Snow Daisy
by Shiragami
Summary: Two people from complete different worlds, met and shared a special encounter. One forgot and moved on, but the other held on and will not let go. Modern day. Possessive!Levi and innocent!Eren. Slightly OOC. Rated M for later chapters.
1. Chapter 01

A snowy night, silence blessed the streets and lamppost dimmed their lights, creating a warm hue. The streets were deserted yet very serene. Only the sound of snow crunching under footsteps could be heard.

11pm, his phone flashed, Eren murmured a few complain before starting a small jog up the sloped pavement. Surrounded by petite sized apartments, he blew hot air in his hands as he nearly reached his own. He knew his roommate was in, judging by the gentle orange light emitted from their windows that contrasted the rest of the sleeping streets.

Eren always felt guilty for coming back late, he mostly worked night shifts so there was no helping the boy. Without a family to his support, the poor young adult had to work as many hours as possible to bring food to his stomach and warmth to his body.

Quietly climbing the rundown stairs within the building, upon reaching the 5th and highest floor, he fished for his rusty keys and fumbled with the lock. He gently pushed the door open and quickly closed it after stepping inside, preventing hot air from escaping. Taking off his boots, he mischievously made a beeline towards a bundle of warmth, his roommate, his childhood friend, and his best friend, the blond haired boy Armin.

Too absorbed in his textbook, Armin did not hear Eren enter the complex. Once Eren collided his cold outerwear against Armin's back, the shorter of the two jumped up from his kotatsu and elbowed Eren in the face.

"Woah! W-What the," spun around and exclaimed Armin, a face full of shock. "EREN!"

Eren fell backwards, definitely did not expect the timid and weak Armin to have that much power in one blow, causing him to have a nosebleed right then and there. Slightly concerned now, Armin snatched some tissues from the box on top of the kotatsu, and brought it to the brunette's bloody nose.

"E-Eren? Are you alright?" worried Armin.

"Do I look alright?"

"Umm. No, but…you almost gave me a heart attack, you know?"

"…Yeah. Guess I deserved that one." laughed Eren behind a bundle of tissues, now dying red quicker than you can eat a boiled potato.

Pushed to the washroom to clean off the blood, as Armin lectured on Eren's prank, they then decided to take a bath together to fight the coldness of the winter. Each at the ends of the tub, they soaked and prayed that the heat would get absorbed into their bones.

"So, anything interesting happened after class?" asked Eren nonchalantly as he gently splashed some warm bath water onto his shoulders.

"If you count studying all evening as 'interesting', then I guess I had a terrific time." replied Armin. Eren squinted his eyes playfully at the blonde.

"What about you, did anything happen at work today?"

"Actually, something did happen." Eren's face broke out into a smirk and placed his left hand under his chin. "I overheard a conversation from my boss on the phone earlier today, he said something about meeting someone tomorrow, and he sounded in panic."

Armin leaned in as if he couldn't hear what Eren was saying, and nudged him to continue.

"I peaked over a crack of his office door and saw him bowing to no one on the phone. First time seeing that strict boss of mine being so meek, I almost burst out loud at the scene." cracked Eren, wiping an invisible tear from his left eye. Armin furrowed his eyebrows and gazed up, thinking of a reason for the boss' sudden change of behavior.

"Maybe your boss' boss is coming down tomorrow for an evaluation of some sort?" suggested Armin, having no clue about the details either.

"Nah, it's his own coffee shop, no one could possibly order him around."

Feeling warmed up, he got up and headed for the shower to thoroughly wash and rinse himself. Both grew up together, the embarrassment was long gone and no one thought it was abnormal, Armin just stared at Eren's back.

"Could it be, he's meeting someone from a bigger company? You know, those ruthless big corporations that dominates over smaller ones and forces them into future profits?"

"Woah Armin, why are you even concerned about this? I just told you the story for a good laugh's sake, you know, the old Weilman, it was just so funny seeing him panic like that." chuckled Eren and completely brushed off Armin's idea as he ran a foamy bath sponge over his lean and smooth body.

"It might be good for you to see if you can acquire the important person's company contact, being under paid by that old goof while working at such a fancy cafe is a joke. If they really are from big companies, you can seek a chance to squeeze yourself into their work instead." replied the Armin, eyes still glued onto Eren's flawless back,

"I guess that makes sense, but that'll happen only if gramps would let me into his office when the phone guy visits."

He turned off the shower and stepped out of the bath, allowing room for Armin to finish his shower too. Wrapping a clean, white towel around his entire body, he braced himself for the cool air to hit his face the moment he opens the bathroom door.

"I'll see what I can do tomorrow, I really hope it's just as you said, Armin. I would love an office job compared to being a waiter under Weilman." He turned the door handle. "Don't stay in there too long, you'll faint again."

...

Under the painted gold plaque with 'Weilman' engraved onto it, Eren twisted his body in the most awkward ways just to sneak a glance at his boss and the other party. Apparently they walked in when Eren was on dish washing duty and he couldn't see the gentlemen in person. Hearing from his co-worker, Petra, she described the two people who walked in as majestic and elegant. She was also practically fuming over how 'tall, dark and sexy' one of them looked. Hearing from his other co-worker, Oluo, his description was just 'dark and sexy'. Upon listening to their hype as the three of them swiped the floor, Eren decided to take a peek too. No, he _had_ to take a peek, his curiosity was killing him!

His curiosity killed him.

The slightly ajar door swung open as Eren lost his balance and crashed into the room. The startling commotion brought everyone's eyes onto the boy whose face slammed on the floor. Shouting profanities in his head, Eren was too afraid to move. Waiting for either side to speak up again, Weilman's face screwed up into terror and stomped over to Eren. Yanking and wrinkling the boy's ironed uniform, he shouted in his face.

"What do you think you are doing? Who gave you the permission to enter this room?" his whole face was darkened by this state. "DO YOU WANT TO BE FIRED, SMALL FRY?!"

Wiping his boss' spit off his face, Eren replied weakly with a small smile. "N-No, Sir, I w-was just passing by and…umm…I-I was wondering if you would've liked me to bring you some tea…or something…"

Still hopelessly smiling like an idiot, Eren braced himself for a punch in the face. He couldn't focus clearly, but a gentlemen, standing by the fancy guest couch, chimed over and grabbed Weilman's wrist before his hand came into contact with Eren's frame.

"Oops, careful now. You wouldn't want to rough up any of your employees, now, would you?"

Eren cranked one of his eyes open when he believed that it was safe to do so, and saw a rather feminine face, accompanied by a feminine voice. He had tied up brown hair and wore a pair of sophisticated glasses. Releasing his hold after hearing the old guy whimper in the most hilarious fashion, the gentleman patted Eren's head and leaned over.

"We would love to have some tea, talking with your boss can parch us quite easily." he whispered the last few words into Eren's right ear, sending a chill down his spine.

Blushing slightly, the brunette bowed without looking anywhere else and quickly hurried out of the room. Once clear from any danger, he dashed through the long halls of the inner parts of the shop and rushed back to his workstation. His eyes darted for Petra and Oluo, grabbed them and yanked them towards a corner. Loudly whispering, Eren spilled what he saw back there.

"You guys have no idea what happened to me back there," both senior co-workers listened with intensity at Eren's story. "I was caught by Weilman," concluded Eren.

Petra's face darkened and Oluo almost gasped out of worry for Eren's safety, even though he never liked the brat. "But a handsome and sexy man helped me out though, just like you described, Petra." Eren's eyes sparkled with admiration.

"Then did you see his eyes? His intense gaze can kill me any day!" Fanboyed Oluo. "Maybe I should get a new haircut, how do you think black would look on me?"

"Black? Why black?"

"Oluo, you're just trying to copy that man, please stop it. You are too old for this." Petra looked unimpressed.

"Shut up! I just 'look' old, I am still the same age as you, so calling me old would be the same as admitting you're old as well!"

Petra fumed and Eren just laughed at the comedy duo, forgetting all about the said promised tea.

...

The man with raven hair let out a tired sigh. He walked towards his black Rolls-Royce Phantom and beckoned his subordinate to hurry up. The taller of the two hurried with a case, probably filled with paper work of the day, and opened the door for his superior.

"Levi, you should really consider buying a car that isn't black. We already wear so much black clothing, it'll make us look like the Yakuza." Complained the brunette as he closed the door.

Already sat down, the older man frowned even more than usual and clicked his tongue in annoyance towards his assistant's rude comparison. Climbed in quickly, the brunette started the car and was ready to reverse. Levi never took his eyes off the front and said in a low tone.

"Don't compare us to those underground dogs, we are proper businessmen."

Returning his head forward and ready to leave for the road, the taller one chuckled at the 'proper business men' title. If anything, Levi was the scariest businessman in the world.

"Also, do not forget to address me as President Ackerman in public, Hanji." Finally glancing towards the driver, Levi added a demanding tone on the driver's name. Hanji just shrugged, knowing Levi all too well to feel the slightest intimidation.

"Yes, yes, whatever you say, _President Ackerman_."

Levi's eyebrow twitched in annoyance upon catching the tease in Hanji's voice. Brushing it off rudely, he knew better than to add fuel and give in to his childish remarks.

The ride back was silent, Levi wasn't the talkative type after all. Letting out a frustrated and loud sigh, Hanji gripped the stirring wheel harder.

"If only that boy brought us something to drink. Talking to that old guy was like talking to a wall, his mind was only focused on one thing, it made me want to chug a whole tank of water just trying to explain to him our contract."

"People as simple minded as him are easy business, Hanji. Although his shop is small and not well known, his place is still as busy as always within the district. I believe we can bring his stalled business and expand it," explained Levi. "You pay him a small sum, he retires, and we take his name under our wing."

Hanji looked at his President with uncertainty. "Although I have never judged your decisions before, considering how Survey Corporation flourished under your guidance, but what's so good about this coffee shop? How can you be so sure that people would be interested this project?"

Levi smirked for the first time in his long ass day. "It's not the owner or the shop that is good. It is the atmosphere and the brew that is worth expanding. I would know a good cup of coffee when I taste one." Unconvinced, the driver pressed on.

"Are you sure no personal feelings are being played in here, President? You are a busy man, yet you did everything you can to clear your schedule and came down here personally." Levi couldn't see it, but he could almost _hear_ Hanji's eyebrows wiggling.

"One more question and I will kick your fat ass out of my car."

Levi was sure Hanji caught on something, he cursed under his breath. _One day, I will bash in that smug face of his._

* * *

><p>Hello everyone, Shiragami here! This is probably going to be the first fanfiction of mine that'll surface the internet. In all honesty, I am not sure where this story is going so for the mean time, please bear with me. (Also, Hanji is depicted as a male in this story!) And just a fair warning, I know absolutely nothing about the business world. Heck, I've barely worked in my life so far, so please excuse and correct me if something is terrible wrong. Reviews and suggestions help a bunch! Thank you for reading~<p>

I will be doing information updates along each chapter. So for those who got confused because of my awkward writing, you can always come to refer to this at the end of every chapter! _**(****tinyurl / nf9b3q3)** - please remove spacing. ^^_

-Shiragami


	2. Chapter 02

Here is chapter two! I always have extremely long introductions for some reason, hopefully this story doesn't bore you. TT^TT I promise to speed up the pace from the next chapter and onwards! It's also very late now, so I will go sleep first. I will check for any mistakes tomorrow so if you want to point out a part that confused you, please let me know! As always, for a beginner writer like me, I would very much appreciate a review or two, thank you for reading Snow Daisy!

EDIT : FUUU. I got the characters mixed up! I fixed it, so sorry if this caused anyone any confusions!

-Shiragami

* * *

><p>"Ughhhh…" Eren let out another sigh.<p>

It was Friday afternoon, a time when all the brats got off school and bombarded coffee shops…all but the one Eren was working at. Why, you ask? Apart from having an expensive menu, the shop's atmosphere was too classy to attract any teenagers nowadays. Sometimes you would get a few rich kids who liked to show off their wealth by entering this cafe, but even rich kids had better things to do than to hangout here on a nice, sunny but cold, Friday afternoon.

Missing his free youth already, Eren moped the marble floor near the washrooms with an obvious deflated frown. Mind wandering off again, the washroom door suddenly kissed Eren's forehead with immense power and knocked him down on the slightly wet, but very shiny floor (courtesy to the boy). Holding his head as his entire body curled up in pain, Eren tried to bite back an agonizing scream, but it wasn't very successful.

"My, my, Jaeger, you've got to watch where you're standing." tsked Oluo, wiping his hands with a handkerchief. His hair now black.

Eren's eyes shot up and yelled furiously at the older male, but the other just ignored Eren's painfully red forehead and walked towards the reception by the entrance. Unable to get an apology from the other, Eren yapped after him just to get on his nerves. Oluo didn't want to get in trouble for creating a commotion, he was about to smack Eren when both of them stiffed up and froze as the entrance door opened with a chime.

"Welco-" both of them blurted out awkwardly at the same time, but halted simultaneously when the customers came in. Oluo's face brightened up like the sun, while Eren was simply lost for words.

_How short._

Fascinated by the height of the person standing in front, he dismissed the icy glares the subject of his thoughts was giving. A painful silence was born between the four, and it took all of Oluo's courage to break it.

"A-A table for t-two?" A cold sweat rolled down his jaw.

"Yes, please." Replied a very tall and well-built blonde with thick eyebrows.

Oluo was about to lead them towards their table, but got interrupted by the raven-haired man. Pointing his index finger elegantly at Eren, his icy grey eyes locked with bright green ones, he spoke coldly.

"I want him to serve as our waiter for the day."

Neither Oluo nor Eren expected such a demand. _Since when did anyone request a specific waiter? We are not that kind of business! And even if we were, why Eren? WHY NOT ME?_ As Oluo was having a fit internally, Eren stiffly walked over and in front of them, leading the two elites to a table by the window corner. Grabbing two menus from a nearby counter as they seated themselves, Eren placed them on the table with as little shaking as possible. _They look like important people, so don't screw this up now!_

Eren took out his note and pen to get ready for their order, but he was so nervous that he dropped his pen on the floor. Weilman would have his head if he knew how unprofessional he was acting right now. Cursing in his head, he bent down to pick it up, only to come into contact with the raven's pale hand. Eren immediately jerked his hand back along with the pen, shocked by how cold the other's skin was. The shorter of the two just glared at Eren with an annoyed and offended face.

"Umm…w-what can I get for both of you?"

He straightened up and put on his best business smile, but it wasn't working too well when Oluo was drilling a hole at the back of his head, clearly jealous and depressed to be told off.

Without even flipping the menus, the blonde ordered. "Just simple black coffee for us, thank you."

"Of course. It'll be ready in ten minutes." Eren gathered the unopened menus, bowed, and hurried off towards the kitchen. The sound of Oluo yelling at Eren could be heard. Turning his attention to the man sitting across, the blond spoke.

"Well... this place certainly have the right atmosphere. Not too casual, yet not too serious. The waiter was quite cute too, don't you think so, Levi?"

"Cut the crap, Erwin. Just focus on what I told you to do."

The two stared down at each other silently, it was a meaningless battle yet neither of them were surrendering.

"Can you explain to me again why you wanted _me_ to take charge of this place?"

"For the last time, can't you just focus on what you have to do? I made you in charge because I trusted you, there!" Fumed Levi. "You were the one who said you needed to come here and see for yourself, so stop wasting my time actually observe like you said you would."

Erwin only raised an eyebrow at his superior, he was definitely pushing his buttons. He knew Levi had a short temper, but any topic related to this specific cafe can get him worked up even faster than usual. In all honesty, the only reason why Erwin took on Levi's proposal of managing this cafe and helping it expands its branch, was because Levi specifically requested him...and Levi wasn't someone who 'requests'. Or would 'beg' be a more fitting term?

Erwin knew Levi from a long time ago, they were both business partners for a while before Levi left and started his own company. Erwin always admired the elite's attitude and quality towards his work, so naturally he followed him. Under the Survey Corporation, Erwin was previously another branch's manager, but he specifically got requested from Levi a week ago to take care of this new project. Once again, Levi doesn't just 'requests', so this piqued his curiosity and decided to come on terms with Levi under one condition: he got to decide whether or not he wanted to take care of this branch, based on how worthy this place was after an evaluation.

_First and most important of all, the quality of the product._

Eren hurried back to the two with freshly brewed coffee and placed them carefully on the table.

"Can I get you anything else?" The waiter politely asked.

"That's all for us now, thank you." Replied Erwin as he brought the coffee mug to his lips. He carefully blew air against the surface of the aromatic drink and took a sip, Levi followed. He closed his eyes as he focused on the taste of the coffee for a bit before reopening them again.

"Not bad, I can see why you would recommend this place and actually take it over." He chuckled and proceeded to prepare for another sip. "It's definitely something worth coming back for."

Levi, on the other hand, just frowned. Clearly unsatisfied with the coffee, the blonde only looked at him with a questioning look on his face.

"Something wrong? I thought you liked their coffee?"

"No. The coffee's fine, however…"

"Yes?"

"It doesn't taste as amazing as the other time I had it…"

Erwin couldn't read the emotions in Levi's eyes, but he knew the shorter man was disappointed.

"Maybe they changed the barista? When did you last come here?"

"Maybe two months ago." Replied Levi, monotone.

Erwin just sighed. Neither of them were coffee experts, how could they be the judges of something like this? Not understanding what was the deal with his superior at all, he just sat back and relaxed for the first time in weeks.

...

It was near closing time, the clock read 9:48. Eren prayed that it would hit 10:00 faster and go back home, as he felt pressured the entire day. The source of that pressure was him, the raven-haired man who just wouldn't stop looking his way. At first he thought it was just his imagination, but after numerous stare backs, the older man's eyes wouldn't even avert.

Erwin, on the opposite side, typed away on his computer. Since he was already there, and Levi didn't seem to want to leave anytime soon, he figured he could at least get some work done. Gathering datas from various sources as well as in-person reports, he filed a document to Levi's email, fully knowing how well the other already knew about this place. Though it had to be done either way, as this was a legal procedure, as well as a condition they had both agreed on. Judging from this pace, he was almost certain he would take on this project regardless if Levi would pester him about it later on or not. It would be a nice change, and surrounded by coffee aroma everyday wouldn't be too bad either.

The clock's needle ticked ever so slowly, but when it finally reached 10:00, Eren fist pumped the air and spun around way too cheerfully at the only remaining two customers in the shop.

"Thank you for your stay, but our shop has hit closing time. Have a safe trip home and come back again!" Waved Eren, smile still as big as ever as he lied about the last part.

Levi just hmphed at that reaction and beckoned Erwin to pack up and leave. Existing the glass doors with the ever so melodious ring, Eren let out a huge sigh that he didn't know he was holding back the entire time.

"Eren, you lucky bastard, do you know how often he was looking at you?" Oluo didn't want to admit that the dark haired elite was looking at Eren, and not at him, despite many attempts at getting in the older's field of view. Eren just looked at his co-worker, dumbfounded.

"Are you alright in the head, Oluo? You are not even gay, why would you be so concerned about that?" asked Eren. "And why would you _even_ want to be stared down like that? I felt like a piece of meat the entire time."

Tiding up his equipments, he went to the locker rooms to change out of his uniform. Only Oluo, Mike, and Eren himself worked until the later night shift. Even Weilman, the owner, left the store at 2pm because he could just do his job at home.

As he pulled a white shirt over his head, Mike walked in to change out of his barista uniform. Mike was never a talker, but surprisingly he initiated a conversation with Eren for the first time in a while.

"Eren, did those two liked my brew?"

"Huh? Which two?"

"The two that stood out the most, black suits, tidy hairstyles, and they smelled very good."

Again, it was one of Mike's weird habits that Eren never understood. Shaking off the last comment, Eren replied.

"I don't know, I didn't look over there too often because I think one of them wanted to kill me." He joked, but he wasn't even sure anymore if that was really a joke.

"I always like watching customers drinking my coffee, and since the two gentlemen ordered pure brews, I wanted to see if they liked my skills." The big-built man said. "I think my skills weren't good enough to one's standards though."

Eren knew Mike was a great barista, he even learned a few tricks from the experienced hands to help around when times were busy. Which is why he didn't understand why the big guy would feel insecure over a small remark now, out of all times. Was it because the man who drank it had a special aura around him? Eren still doesn't know anything about the raven-haired man, but now that he thought about it, maybe he did saw him somewhere before, he seemed a little familiar.

...

The two stood side by side near the black Rolls-Royce Phantom, having another stare down. Erwin was slightly pissed off at his superior's demand, but he couldn't do anything about it because it was his own problem for not taking his own car over here.

"Don't make me repeat shit, Erwin. Just get a cab and go home, it won't kill you." Levi's tone sounded impatient, he was getting annoyed to the max. He obviously had a goal in mind, and it definitely wasn't giving Erwin a ride home in his luxurious car on a cold, winter evening.

Erwin said nothing, he pulled out his cellphone and dialed for a cab. Not long after, a yellow car stopped by and took Erwin away. Levi glanced at his silver watch once again, it read 10:30. _God damn it all. How long does this kid take to close a fucking store?_ Tired from a long day and denied from Eren's attention, he leaned against his vehicle and breathed hot air against his leather gloved hands.

Small chatters approached Levi's ears an he looked up towards the building's main entrance, it seem like the workers finally decided to go home. Eren was the last to come out, he had the duty to turn off the lights and lock up the store every night. Finally, after anxiously waiting for this moment, Levi slowly walked towards Eren, who was still oblivious to the man approaching him.

"Hey."

Eren froze upon hearing that same icy, cold voice. _No way!_ He turned to his left and saw the same raven-haired man, who looked like he was about to kill him the entire time at the store, standing right next to him. Eren gulped, not wanting to offend a potentially very important customer, he pulled on his business smile once more.

"Good evening, Sir, why are you still out here in the middle of the night? Did you forget something back in the shop?

Levi didn't speak, instead, he extended his hand out and grabbed Eren's arm. Rendering the younger terrified with his sudden behaviour, he tried to pull away but the shorter man was surprisingly strong, to Eren's horror.

"Please, stop this. What do you think you're doing?" He struggle. "I don't have anything you'd want!" Shouted Eren, eyes shut tightly as he was afraid of what's about to come next.

_Yes you do._

The brunette couldn't see, but Levi's expression softened by a notch at Eren's terror. He didn't mean to scare the kid, let alone make him feel uncomfortable and threatened. Levi knew he didn't have the best ability to talk to normal people, he could never express himself properly. Trying his best to remain composed and gentle to calm the other, he pressed his free hand on top of Eren's brown locks that were slightly stiff from the harsh winter air.

Eren slowly let his eyes open when he felt a hand on his head, it was oddly comforting.

"It's late, I was here until closing time anyways so I thought I'd give you a ride back home. It's dangerous at night."

Maybe it was just the thrill of the moment, or the dim lights on the streets, but the elite looked very handsome and alluring. His pale skin glowed warmly under the lamppost. For the first time today, the brunette wasn't afraid to properly look into those ice grey eyes.

_You are the only dangerous one here_. Eren's mind protested, but his body moved along Levi's pace towards the car. Levi opened the passenger's door for him, just like the gentleman he aimed to be. Without even the time to have second thoughts, the door was shut and Levi made his way towards the other side of his car. Eren watched the whole situation is shock, not comprehending why he didn't protest against the man's offer, and not knowing what might happen next made him extra anxious. _Oh Eren, what are you doing, stepping inside a grown man's car late at night? _He desperately wanted to flee.

Once inside, Levi buckled up and glanced at the younger's seatbelt, still untouched. He clicked his tongue and reached over to buckle it for the brat, but Eren was too self-counscious and wary of Levi, that he jumped at the sudden loss of distance and a blush spread across his face. Levi froze at the other's reaction, but his face soon turned into a smirk, which made Eren redden even more. Wanting to push some more positive reactions out of him, Levi decided to tease him a little.

"Your seatbelt, kid. Didn't your mommy teach you?"

It was Eren's turn to freeze. It was a topic that no one dared brush upon. It wasn't even something he'd discuss with Armin more than once. A sudden bitterness washed over all his nervousness, and his face turned dark. Levi was about to start the car before he noticed that the other was awfully quiet. _Did I say something wrong?_

Eren shook his head, it was an old event now, and the older male couldn't possibly knew. _Yes, I should just let go of this, I should face this by telling him the truth, even if he is just a stranger. That's right, I am not going to be kept chained down by my past_. _Didn't I decide this a long time ago?_ Raising his head up to look out the windshield, he broke the silence by trying his best to look natural and uncaring.

"My mother died when I was ten, and in case you keep on asking, my dad disappeared right before my mother's death."

Levi could only stare at the other's profile. The atmosphere was heavy, even someone as cold as the President of Survey Corporation knew to let go of this topic before losing the younger's company. Starting up the car, he did a few adjustments to the gears before skillfully driving away from the cafe. The last conversation shared between the two for the night was about addresses. Needless to say, the rest of the ride was completely silent.

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><p>Information Update : <strong>tinyurl  q4ks5rc **


	3. Chapter 03

Hello readers, Shiragami here! I will finally be done with character/plot introductions in this chapter (so sorry!), and I hope you didn't find it too tedious to read. From now on, the story will focus more on Eren and Levi's relationship development, so I hope you'll stick around! As always, information updates will be posted at the end of each chapter incase my writing gets too confusing! Thank you for reading Snow Daisy!

-Shiragami

* * *

><p>Flickering through channels, Armin was bored out of his mind. For the first time he was free on a Friday night, yet none of his friends had the same luxury as him. Winter term was almost over and he had just finished his last exam today. Glancing over at the calendar, it read December 3rd. Sighing, he turned of the TV and placed his abused remote back on the Kotatsu. Diving deeper under the warm table, he breathed out contently at how good it felt to have his blood rush to the back to his head.<p>

Just as he was about to fall asleep, he heard the door open. _Eren must be back. _He crawled up from under the covers to greet his buddy, only to come in face with a very gloomy boy. He was about to ask what happened out of concern, but Eren quickly undressed himself from his puffy winter coat and headed straight to the washroom. Armin knew for sure something was up now, so he quietly followed Eren as the brunette ran the hot water into the tub. Even now, Eren refused to acknowledge Armin's presence.

"Eren, did something happen at work today?" Armin's tone was strong, but also careful, afraid that one wrong word can send Eren storming out of this house.

It had happened before, every time they touched on a sensitive topic, Eren would run away from it by leaving the house with an excuse. He would then come back a few hours later with a few snacks in hand, pretending that nothing ever happened, and that he was just out to buy some refreshments.

Eren was silent for a few seconds, before replying to Armin's question. "Actually, something did happen." he admitted.

The blonde was surprised by the other's honesty, he knew that only _that _topic can bring Eren down like this. "Do you want to talk about it?" He was concerned and worried, but at the same time, curious. Nobody at work should've known about his best friend's past so who could trigger this event?

The brunette was fighting back the urge to push past Armin and escape again. _Stop it Eren, you need to stop letting this matter get you. Just let it go already! _Turning off the water, he dropped a bath bomb into the steaming tub. _You've lived and fought everyday since then, you are not weak enough to be consumed by the past anymore._

"You want to get in?" Eren smiled weakly, looking at Armin in the eyes.

...

For the rest of that night, Eren refused to sleep in his own bed, so the two chatted and shared opinions on everything on Armin's side. Armin consoled the slightly older young adult, whispering _It's alright, it's not your fault, let the past go and live the way you want _over and over again. He held Eren's head against his small frame. To Armin, that was a special night, it was the first time Eren let out his bottled up feelings, and then simply cried like a child. The child who held back his tears all this time has finally let them out twelve years later.

"Hey, Eren, do you still remember what you told me twelve years ago at the funeral?" Armin spoke in a soft voice, stroking Eren's head gently. The crying has stopped by now, but Eren refused to look up because his face was red and swollen, it was embarrassing to be witnessed in such state.

"When I childishly said that my grandpa could adopt you and you could become our family, you grabbed me by the collar and yelled at me." Armin laughed a little as he walked back into the past. "You said you would never become my family. You, who hated your father into the bones, told me that you would carry on the name of Jaeger so you would never forget what that man has done." continued Armin. "…Hey, you still listening?"

Eren let out a raspy confirmation and Armin laughed a little more at the other's abused voice.

"At that time, I viewed you in an entirely new light. We were both kids, yet you had much more maturity and determination than I could imagine at that age. Even though you just lost everything, and even though only hate kept you moving, I admired you immensely."

"I didn't lose everything." Eren quietly mumbled.

"Sorry?"

"I said, I didn't lose everything. You were still with me." he repeated. "To be honest, at that moment, I wasn't angry with you because of what you said. I was angry with myself, and I was trying to forget the pain by setting a goal in mind. I believed that accepting your kindness will make me forget who I am. However, it wasn't the right way to solve this, and it took me twelve years to realize that I am letting that man win against me, by chasing after his shadows."

Armin stopped stroking Eren's silky brown locks before something clicked in his head.

"What made you suddenly develop a resolve for your past?" he asked out of curiosity. Eren was stubborn, so for him to finally let go like this was too sudden, it wasn't normal.

The taller finally looked up to meet with steel blue orbs, it took Armin a very painful pinch on the thigh to prevent letting out a laugh against Eren's puffed up face.

"Sometimes you just need a forceful, stranger's push. I couldn't even run away, so I thought a lot on my way home today."

"Huh. That reminds me, you got home early today, how come?"

...

It was 2 am. Levi tossed and turned on his plain, king-sized bed. He was beating himself up for screwing up his first official conversation with the kid. _Eren Jaeger, was it? I should've told him that we've met before, and not have him see me as some kind of stalker. _Levi groaned for the n'th time that night.

He remembered how bad the mood was in the car, it was definitely a taboo topic for the younger. Levi had parents, selfish and uneducated, but they were still his parents, though Levi never felt any attachments for them. When he was little, his family lived within Wall Maria. They were so poor that his mother never cooked for him, and his father never looked at him. Money was the biggest priority in his family, his parents valued numbers more than their own son's wellbeing. He cut off all contacts with his parents when he got a full scholarship for the best university within Wall Sina, and studied there for half a decade. Then he traveled within all three walls for years before finally settling for Wall Rosa. Starting his own corporation at the mere age of twenty-seven, the company grew fast and eventually stood where it stands today.

His parents, upon hearing the new of their son, did everything they could to find him. They treated him like a king when they met again after nearly a ten years later. _Pathetic_, was the first thing that came to mind when he saw how pitiful his parents were acting. The raven wasn't a heartless man, after all, they did keep him alive before having to fend for himself. He could easily allow them to live a rich life with his everyday pocket changes, and he did. He located them as far away from him as possible, but he'd still get a few annoying phone calls once in a while, asking for more absurd permissions and useless materials.

_Parents. I guess it's a whole different meaning for different people. I wonder if his__ parents loved him very much. _Feeling tired from thinking of the past, Levi finally closed his eyes and drifted to sleep. His mind was now filled with the boy. It was almost 4 am.

_..._

_Ding dong~_

The doorbell rang. It was one past noon, yet Armin and Eren just woke up thanks to their late night 'man talk'. Armin being fast and agile, finished his morning routine in a jiffy and started to cook the first meal of the day before getting interrupted by the doorbell.

"Yes, coming!" he said, loudly enough for the person on the other side to hear as he turned off the stove.

Armin opened the door and looked up, but saw no one there. He was so used to being surrounded by people taller than him by at least head, that he didn't even bother looking down at first. Immediately realizing the other's presence, he quickly guided his head downwards to eye-level, and saw a man dressed in pure black, frame fitting suit and outer trench coat resting neatly on his arm. His raven hair was styled nicely, it was a clean and refresh cut. Though Armin fidgeted awkwardly under his intimidating glare.

"S-Sorry. Umm. Hi?" was all he could muster.

"Does a boy named Eren live here?" Levi tried his hardest to hide his annoyed tone. _The things I do for him._

"Yes, Eren lives here. What b-business do you have with him?"

Tapping his foot impatiently, it took half the fiber in his body to not push past the blonde and enter rudely.

"I need to talk to him. _In private._"

His icy, straightforward glare sent chills down Armin's spine in a very bad way. Too nervous and intimidated to protest, he backed off with the questions.

"Oh, h-ha ha. Eren i-is in the washroom, showering, I think. I…umm. I can just stand outside until you finish your private t-tal-" Armin was grabbed by the arm before he could even finish his suggestion, as Levi spun their positions around and lowly mumbled a short 'thanks', before closing the door on the blonde's face.

Dumbfounded, it took a few seconds to process what just happened. _D-Did I…Did I just kicked out of my own house? DID I JUST EXCUSE MYSELF FROM MY OWN HOUSE?! _The poor Armin, standing alone in the cold stairway outside their entrance, was having an internal fit thanks to his own weakness.

...

The water finally toned down, _Eren is probably done with his shower_, Levi thought. He sat on top of the Kotatsu table, placing one slender but toned leg over the other, as Eren's apartment had practically close to no furniture at all. The place was also small and old, there were many crack and distorted colors on the walls. He had at least the decency to take off his brand named shoes in this 'dirty apartment', in respect to Eren's home.

The brunette, being completely oblivious towards the world outside his washroom, walked out like he normally would when Armin was home with a simple towel around his waist.

"Hey Armin, what are you cooki-"

Time froze, or so it felt. Eren's mouth was left dangling in midsentence and Levi just stared straight at the half naked boy…occasionally running his eyes up and down the younger's body.

It felt like an eternity before Eren snapped out of it. He retreated quickly back to the washroom and hit behind the door, only letting his head poke out angrily.

"What are YOU doing HERE?" he screamed. Levi had little to no common sense when it came to socializing, so he didn't know what was the big deal for him, a stranger, to just 'suddenly show up'. Truthfully speaking, Levi simply wanted to take the boy out for a day as an apology for last night. He woke up early in the morning, despite sleeping late the previous night, to finish his work and leave the rest of the day free. Not to mention, he also pushed half of that work onto his secretary, Hanji, who he'd have to deal with later.

He got up and started to walk towards the the half-naked kid. Eren was panicking, he was just about the slam the washroom door before a strong hand gripped the edge and held it still. Once again, Eren was amazed by the strength the shorter male possessed.

"Would you like to spend your afternoon with me today?" The brunette remained silent at the smooth and straightforwardness of the older, but in reality, Levi was just blunt about everything. Fidgeting a little, obviously uncomfortable with his choice of clothing, or should we say, cloth, Eren tried to think of an excuse to dismiss this man. The last thing he wanted to do was to hangout with a stranger, a stalker (I mean who comes back to your apartment right after they get your address?), and a man whose background he didn't know.

"Umm, I ugh…I already have something planned for today, hahahaha, t-too bad, huh!" He laughed awkwardly as he rubbed the back of his neck. Levi was focused, but his eyes can't help but to secretly wander around a bit. Holding himself together, he replied to Eren's obvious lie.

"It's important, I have something I need to talk to you about."

Armin, still outside and feeling very cold, pressed his ears against his own door. He thanked the fact that he lived on the highest floor, so no one would pass him by and stare at him suspiciously.

"Can't you just say it right here, right now? And where is Armin?"

"It's too long and complicated to speak of it now, just come with me."

Armin couldn't hear properly. Knowing all too well that it was bad to eavesdrop on someone, he just couldn't help it. What if that man was a criminal, out to hurt Eren? Now scaring himself, he turned the door handle slightly, creating as little sound as possible and opened a small crack.

"You are getting on my nerves, just who do you think you are? Barging into my life like this, I don't even know you! What in the world do you want from me?!" Eren's patience finally snapped, he had this suspicious man suddenly show up just yesterday, and he's already pushing his way into Eren's world. Levi retained his composure, finally understood where the boy was going at (can _anyone_ be this insensitive?), he provided an answer to the boy's desperate question by handing him a fancy business card.

"My name is Levi Ackeman. I am the President of Survey Corporation, and I request you, Eren Jaeger, to spend a day with me."

Then, only the super loud gasp emitted from Armin, peeking between the door crack, could be heard.

* * *

><p>Information Update: <strong>tinyurl  ozqec5n**


	4. Chapter 04

Finally some interaction between Levi and Eren! ^^ I hope I didn't speed this up a bit _too_ much...I wanted this story to portray relationships a little more realistically. So let me know what you think!

-Shiragami

* * *

><p>It was not a pleasant morning...well, afternoon now, for Eren.<p>

In events prior to this one, Armin charged in from behind the entrance door like a mad man, and dragged Eren to their bedroom to speak. Levi was clearly extremely unhappy about it.

"EREN!" Armin's eyes were intense, but he kept his voice to a whisper-yell, not wanting the man behind their door to hear. "LET ME SEE THAT BUSINESS CARD."

The blonde was scaring him a little. He handed the elegant card to Armin, very confused about all this commotion. The other's eyes grew even larger than before, impossibly large. His body trembled as he held the card, as if it was the first time he held food in days.

"I knew he looked familiar, but the height fooled me a little at first…Eren, please tell me you know who this man is."

"Kind of, I guess? We met at the cafe yesterday…"

"No no no no no, that's not it! Tell me you know who this man is. Do you ever watch the news, read the magazines, or even browse networks at all?" Armin was gripping Eren's shoulders a little too hard, causing him to brush away Armin's hands harshly.

"I only read comics, and I hardly have time to watch TV, you know what already!" The blonde was pulling his hair by now, he can't believe Eren almost let something as big as this pass by without ever knowing the big picture.

"Listen Eren, I won't even try to explain it to you, but he is important. More important than any celebrities you'll meet. Now you get your butt out there, but please get dressed first, and accompany that man. Remember, you HAVE to get acquainted to him, it's for your own good." Armin's eyes were so wide and bloodshot and all up in Eren's face, how could he refuse?

"And also, I demand every. single. detail. when you get back home tonight."

With that said and done, Eren now finds himself alone with this 'Levi', in the same car they were in yesterday. Armin's words of wisdom kept on circling Eren's head, he felt like he should take it into consideration. It wasn't everyday the timid Armin could become this scary. Clearing his throat a little, he nervously opened his mouth to break the ice.

"Umm…President Ackerm-"

"Just Levi is fine."

The sudden interruption punctured the boy's courage once more. Trying even harder than before, he fisted the ends of his jacket's sleeve and spoke again.

"L-Levi! Where are we going? If y-you don't mind me asking…"

The man with raven hair swiftly changed lanes as the boy asked. He then sighed at the boy's question before stopping at a red light. Taking this opportunity to look at the adorably nervous kid next to him, he replied nonchalantly.

"First we are going to get you a proper coat. I can hardly believe you'd wear something that old and full of holes in the middle of winter."

Taking slight offense to that, Eren just looked away and frowned. He admitted that it has been years since he replaced his coat, but he managed so far just fine. Suddenly thinking about his bank account, how much can he spend this month without going completely broke? Feeling frustrated and stressed at the numbers once more, his brows furrowed together, thinking hard. Though nothing was left unnoticed by the older male next to him.

After what seemed like a twenty-minute drive, Levi pulled over and parked in front of a store. Eren stepped out and observed his surroundings, only to see some very new and bright buildings surround him. Levi locked his car with a press of a button, and waited for Eren to come back down to earth. The boy had, obviously, never been to this side of the city. His gawking explained it all. Chuckling at the sight, Levi called out Eren's name before turning his heel and walked into the designated store.

Inside the shop, the first thing Eren noticed was that the floor was very shiny, and the tiles were white marbles. Bright beige lights shined everywhere and mannequins showcased designer suits and coats for the season. Everything about the store screamed sophistication and elegance, and Levi looked more than fitting to be inside here, shopping. For the first time, Eren noticed that despite being slightly shorter, Levi had a stronger built. His fingers were slender under the black-leathered gloves, but they looked larger than his own. His hair looked like silk, and the color black was strangely attractive on him. Eren kind of wanted to touch the shaved parts at the back of Levi's head. _Oh my God. Strange thoughts alert! Strange thoughts alert!_

To distract himself, he peeled his eyes off the man who he barely knows, and walked awkwardly towards a random, neatly arranged shelf. He browsed through the selection, taking note on how soft and silky the dress shirts were, and how long and slender the pants were. _These would look good on a model, I wonder how I would look like in these…_

Lost in thoughts, Eren didn't feel someone approach him from behind.

"Found something you like?" Eren flinched. Levi's body was pressed behind Eren. His mouth was so close to his ears, he could feel his warm breath hit the back of his lobes. Suddenly flustered and confused, Eren's speech became messy and incoherent.

"N-N-No! I'm s-still look-k-k-king… Aha hah. aha ha ha. yeah." He wanted to calm down, so he pretended to be busy looking at the price tags, mind still spinning around. However, things backfired when he turned the tag around and counted the amount of digits this coat valued. Repelled by the tag, thy holy coat commands thou to kneel down! Eren fell onto his knees and counted his fingers. _How many months of constant labor can amass to that? _

Levi was dense, but when it came to human reactions, he could read them like the back of his hand, thanks to his work. And since Eren was so easy to figure out, he responded extremely well to his teasing (please forget Levi's failure in chapter two, lol). Pretending to be concerned about the boy, he pulled the kid up ever so easily from the waist, whispering "Are you ok?" and the brunette's legs felt weak once more.

"I'm f-fine…thank you…" Unable to look back at Levi, who had a visible smirk across his face, _Oh God, oh my God, he's so close!_, he inquired about the price of this coat to cover his embarrassment and discomfort. "Umm, is there anything cheaper than this? I don't have as much money as you, so I can't buy th~IS!"

Eren's voice pitched up when he felt the hands that were holding up his body, squeezed his waist ever so sensually. Levi simply played it off, like what an adult would do when they want to get familiar with a child (like a rub on the back or something), but no matter how you looked at this, this was wrong on so many levels. "Too expensive? Then we can keep on looking."

The brunette didn't understand why Levi's hands were still resting on his body, he was just about to escape when they finally departed from his waist and positioned themselves against the shelf, trapping the youth between it and his body. The slightly shorter man pretended to reach for the deepest part of the shelves. He pressed his hard torso against Eren's back, even with all their clothes acting as barriers, the younger could feel it. The distance closed in so quickly, leaving no room for Eren to breathe. He also felt Levi's hip pressed lightly against his butt, the brunette had to hold a hand over his mouth to stop himself from gasping. His nose being extra sensitive right now, picked up for the first time the light cologne the elite used. It smelled sweet and alluring, yet very mature and sexy…_but it was no time to be melted by that!_ Eren screamed to himself.

Eren never caught on the elder's approaches, the innocent boy simply thought that Levi didn't mind physical contacts with other people. He bit his lips, unable to handle the heat anymore, ducked under Levi's arms and ran across to the opposite side of the store.

Levi just chuckled to himself at that pure reaction. _How adorable._ However, he knew perfectly well where to draw the line for today, it was their second 'official' encounter after all, yet he was already losing self-control. Who can blame him? Levi watched over the boy for almost two months, yet he never got the opportunity to have a talk with him. Now that he was starting to become acquainted with Eren, he needed to play it cool and slow. _Enough, Levi, no more touching for the day_.

Spending that time around the shelf was totally just for playing, the raven actually had a goal in mind coming here today. He handpicked a few approved coats and beckoned a sales girl to pick them up. All the girls there just giggle between them, before finally pushing a small, blonde girl out. Levi took this as an insult, that they found his height to be funny and purposely got him a shorter female. Little did he know, that the girls were fangirling over the little session he had with Eren earlier.

"The other boy in this store, get him to try these on for me. If the sizes don't fit, go help him change it." ordered Levi coldly, all the intimacy were gone. The blue eyed girl nodded shyly before hurrying to find Eren who was hiding in a corner among hanged clothing, pathetically.

Levi sat down on a leather couch located right in front of the elegant changing room, where Eren was pushed in just a few seconds ago. As he waited for the boy to try on the clothes he picked himself, he got a little excited just thinking about it. Then his mind wandered off even further into the gutters. He imagined Eren sleeping on his bed, wearing his shirt, and nothing else...

Levi furrowed his brows and brought his hand to his face, gloved fingers massaging his temples. _Since when did you become such a pervert? You never had these thoughts before, not even with _her_._

Eren came out a minute later, wearing a brown, fur-hooded winter coat. It definitely wasn't something Levi would wear, but it looked cute on the boy. Though he can't help but to judge the rest of Eren's choice of clothing. He figured since they were there already, he might as well pick some full outfits for him.

After what seemed like an hour, Eren was exhausted with putting stuff on and taking stuff off. Did he really look bad in all the other clothes he tried on? He thought. Levi noticed the tiredness from the younger's eyes, and decided that it was enough clothes for this trip. He quietly said something to the small lady, very closely against her ear. Something twitched at the back of Eren's mind, but he ignored it by pretending he never saw that. _I mean, why do I care, right? That just proves he likes physical contacts, so earlier with me too..._

The small lady's face brightened up at Levi's words and immediately called the other ladies to help. There were two pile of clothes, Eren noticed, one big pile and one smaller pile. The sales ladies took the big pile and carefully brought them to the counter. Eren panicked, immediately going after them.

"W-Wait! I am not buying them!" He felt like a dick, trying on so many clothes, both inner and outer wear, yet in the end he wasn't going to buy anything. The ladies just giggled again and the smaller one spoke up.

"It's ok, you're not paying for them, your boyfriend is!"

That was two stones thrown at the brunette's face. _LEVI is paying for ME? So all those clothing that he told me to change and take off, he was thinking of buying all of them? And did she just say BOYFRIEND?! No, that's a mistake!_

Eren's mind was spinning, he didn't know what was going on anymore. He dumbly watched Levi walk over the counter and took out a shiny, gold card from his slim wallet. He gave the card to the cashier like it was trash. The sound of scanning, beeping, wrapping and bagging could be heard. The poor boy just stood there, staring at Levi's back.

Not patient enough to stand through the entire process, he stopped the lady from bagging one coat and took it from her. He then walked over the Eren, who still had a shocked expression hanging on his face. He found it to be completely priceless, so much that he wanted to tease the boy some more, but then he knew he won't be able to stop himself. For example, he wanted to stick his tongue into the brunette's open mouth right then and there, but it would've been a bad idea. Ripping off the tag, Levi put the coat around the boy's body before snatching the old, worn out one from his arms.

Levi was a gentleman towards women and non-subordinates, so he couldn't possible let the girls take his bags for him. Carrying all the clothes he bought for Eren, he placed them all on the back seat. Now both sitting in front, Eren woke up from his little trance and spoke, though he didn't realize that his mouth was hanging open for so long.

"Why?" Eren's voice cracked, but that didn't stop him from staring at Levi right in the eyes. He noticed that those grey orbs were a lot less intimidating than yesterday at the cafe.

Levi felt that Eren was the type who wouldn't take (expensive) store-bought presents no matter what, so he half lied about his true intentions.

"This is an apology for yesterday. I didn't mean to scare you, I just had a hard time finding the right way and time to talk to you." Eren raised an eyebrow. "And also an apology for poking into your business, I realized soon after that it wasn't something you'd want to remember nor talk about." _And also because you are Eren Jaeger and I want to give you anything and everything._

Eren heard sincerity behind Levi's usual harsh voice. Even though he said he wouldn't think about it anymore, one night just wasn't enough to harden his determination. Quietly, but surely, he told Levi that he was fine.

"It's an old story now, I don't want to let it bother me anymore. And you shouldn't apologize for something you didn't do on purpose, especially apologies like _that_." Eren glanced back at all the fancy, bagged, designer clothes. The younger didn't know the big picture behind 'a President that owned the largest company within Wall Rosa', he couldn't believe anyone would be able to afford all this without hurting their wallet at least a little.

"Don't underestimate me, Eren. That kind of spending is like dropping half a cent on the floor. Though I wouldn't compare that kind of things with you, since you are worth so much more to me than mere digits."

Eren blushed at Levi's confession. He was confused, he wanted to ask but he was afraid of the answer. I mean, it has only been two days since the two met, what can he possibly feel and expect? What can Levi possibly feel and expect? _Would I be happy to become closer to him? Do I feel repelled? Scared? Do I feel nervousness? Uneasy? Friendship? Love?_

Eren's eyes squeezed his eyes shut and shook his head, that was way off the chart. He can't believe he was questioning that with a man he barely knew. Heck, the man was probably straight like the majority of the population here. Coming down with a satisfied conclusion, Eren nodded at himself that they were probably just becoming friends, and decided to stop thinking about it.

Levi, watching him closely from the corner of his eyes, just smiled at his every body movements and every expressions. _Cute._

Both satisfied but hungry due to their recent shopping spree, Levi drove down in search for an appropriate restaurant to impress the youth even more. Levi was never proud of his wealth, in fact, he never really cared about it. Though now, he was glad that he could give the poor boy a wonderful time. It was almost like showing off, he hated to admit, but right now Levi was willing to do anything to get on Eren's mind.

_Eren Jaeger, think about me more._

* * *

><p>Information Update : <strong>tinyurl  nanv6o5**


	5. Chapter 05

Hello readers! Sorry if the chapters are out slower now, I am prepping for a midterm in two days so I don't have that much time to write. ;;;; I promise to release more frequently next week! How are the chapters so far? Do you think the development is going too fast? I am sort of basing it on my own feelings, for instance, if I were to make an encounter similar to the characters in this story, I would react and feel this way. But still, I wonder if it's too unrealistic to show any emotions towards someone who you'd know for a mere two days. OTL Let me know what you think!

-Shiragami

* * *

><p>"Out of all places, you chose here…"<p>

"…Yeah, I come here often with Armin…" Eren smiled nervously.

The two were sitting in a dessert house, pastel colors contrasted Levi's darkness. The raven's eyebrow twitched when a mascot server skipped by to take the orders of the teen couple behind them. Eren knew that this place wasn't of Levi's fancy, but it was the only place he could afford, as well as treat the older as gratitude for the clothes earlier.

"Umm, you're not ordering anything to eat?..."

"…Don't worry about me, I can manage skipping a meal." Levi was a busy man after all. When he doesn't spend all his free time with Eren, he was furiously doing work. He intended to keep it that way since he wanted to see Eren as often as possible. No. He wanted to talk to him as often as possible, not just gaze from afar.

Also, he cannot stand sweet food.

Eren felt a little bummed, he really wanted to treat the other, _it's just what friends do, right?...Oh well, I can treat him next time! _Happy with the decision, he nodded to himself. _Wait…did I just say, 'next time'?_

As Eren was having a mental discussion with himself, Levi flipped his phone out. It has been vibrating for a while now, _probably just Hanji making a fuss again_. And he was correct. The president clicked his tongue as he knew the day was going to end, and that he would have to go back to work and wait 'God knows how long' before having the opportunity to see Eren again. Turning his phone off completely, he threw it back in his coat pocket. _No one is going to interrupt my precious time with Eren._

A mascot server came by when Eren signaled, letting it know that he was ready to order. The younger looked so excited as he pointed at what he wanted, whatever it was, and Levi just stared at Eren's face intensely the entire time. Which startled the kid when he shifted his attention back to the shorter of the two. Strangely though, Eren didn't feel threatened this time, mainly because now he knew that Levi didn't have any ill intentions…_hopefully_…

He fidgeted a little, but then decided to man up and look straight back at Levi with confidence. Sure, he didn't understand why Levi stared at him like that, maybe it was just one of his habits? Maybe he wasn't even looking at Eren, maybe he just happened to focus on Eren's face, as he got lost in thoughts? So many possibilities, but Eren decided to stop shying away and challenged the older male for once.

He stared back into those ice grey eyes, intending to keep on looking into them until Levi would the one to avert first. Needless to say, the older didn't show any signs of being affected by Eren's stare back. As seconds gone by, the younger's face grew hotter and hotter, and his gaze became weaker and weaker.

Eren was never good at communicating with others, it took him a while to befriend his co-workers at the cafe too. He usually never stared into someone's eyes for longer than three seconds, and thirty seconds have already gone by just maintaining eye contact with Levi.

The raven noticed Eren's intentions and decided to take advantage of it. He tried to keep his poker face on (to others, it just looked murderous), though he can't help but feel one corner of his lips curve upwards. Finally after one minute, Eren looked away, unable to handle the heat in his cheeks. Now he was suffering double embarrassment, one came from Levi's stare, the other came from his pitiful defeat. As he was recovering, he swore he heard a low chuckle coming from the other man. Was he laughing at him? Instead of feeling offended, for some strange reason, he was glad that he could entertain the older male.

_That's right, he is a president, right? What kind of work does he do as a president, I wonder?_

Just as he was about to familiarize himself with Levi a little bit more, his beautifully decorated strawberry parfait was placed on his table. Giving a small 'thank you' as the mascot left, Eren immediately took a spoon and dug in for a bite. As the sweet flavor hit his lively taste buds, the brunette let out a very satisfied moan (which was the best kind of music to Levi's ears), and wiggled his body in happiness. He just kept on eating and eating, it was his first 'meal' of the day. As he was about to wolf down another bite, he remembered the older male sitting across from him. _Manners, right_…He only went out with Armin or his other school friends before, so he forgot all about treating and respecting a guest.

Levi was more than satisfied just watching the kid eat, though. It was slightly painful at the same time, to see Eren's soft, pink lips moving around the spoon, his little red tongue darting out once in a while to lick the cream _ever so slowly_ that were sticking on the corners of his lips. There were also many happy sighs coming out of Eren's throat, invading Levi's ears mercilessly. _It must be illegal for someone to be this cute, yet sexy at the same time_. He almost wanted to hide Eren as he ate, afraid that other potential predators might see him like this.

Eren scooped another spoonful of his parfait and brought it in front of Levi. The older snapped out of his daze and furrowed his eyebrows in confusion.

"Do you want to try some? Sorry for forgetting, I guess I was just too hungry." he laughed nervously.

Levi thought about this long and hard. He despised sweet food, so much that he could puke from just trying to eat something like a piece of chocolate. However, taking Eren's offer would also mean sharing an indirect kiss with the brunette. He internally sighed to himself, feeling like a hormonal teenager for getting worked up over something like that.

As long as Levi commanded, nearly any men or women would fall for him. Even with his shorter status and awful personality, he had enough wealth, power, charms, style and abilities to win over the heart of almost any human he wanted. Yet no one was able to catch his interest, and nothing lasted longer than a one-night stand. _Except for 'her', but that's a completely different story_.

Still holding the spoon there, Eren couldn't read Levi's expression. He thought maybe the elite was annoyed, having something childish like that shoved close to his face. Feeling a little embarrassed and rejected, he retreated his spoon. Though, before he could retract it completely, Levi quickly grabbed his wrist and pulled him forward again. Taking the spoonful of parfait in his mouth, Levi controlled his gag reflex as much as he could. _Just think about Eren, that this spoon and food were coated with his saliva_ (lol, I don't think that's any better). With that logic in mind, he swallowed it down completely, but his darkened face betrayed his nonchalant act.

Picking this information up, Eren immediately apologized. "S-Sorry! Did you not like that? Ahh, I shouldn't have force you to eat it, no, I should've known that you wouldn't like this kind of food the moment you didn't order anything." Flustered, Eren stood up and apologized over and over again before looking down at his parfait, appetite now thrown out the window.

Levi wanted to tell the boy that it was fine, but the need to throw up prevented him from opening his mouth. After massaging his temples for a while, as he tried to calm down his upset stomach, he managed to form words again. The raven-haired man knew lying now wouldn't convince the youth anymore, so he just told him the truth as gently as possible, trying not to sound like he was blaming the kid.

"I can't eat sweet food, but don't worry about it, it wasn't your fault. Like you said before, there is no need to apologize like _that_ for something you didn't know, right?" he managed to cough up a chuckle. "Look, you made the other customers look this way, thanks to your exaggerated apologies." Levi meant to tease the boy, but the other just took this complete seriously.

_Oh no, I must've made a fool out of myself, and now he must be embarrassed to be seen with me here…wait…when did I start to care for his feelings?...Just yesterday I was…is it because I see him as a friend now?..._

Using this opportunity, as Eren was once again distracted by his own train of thoughts, Levi took off his right leathered glove and swiped his thumb against Eren's chin, scooping off bits of cream. Oh, how smooth and soft Eren's skin was. He was about to lick the cream off his finger, but the thought of having another taste of sweet food made him wipe if off instead. _Che- What a waste. _

Eren could only stare at Levi's intimate action, eyes as wide as saucers. His lips just parted and closed like a fish, unable to spill out any words. His mind was running like a roller coaster, and it finally did it when Levi sent him a smirk as a final blow. Eren hid his extremely red face behind his hands.

…

It was 9 pm, hearing a car park outside the quiet neighbor hood, Armin peaked out from his apartment window. Looking down, he saw Eren and Levi standing beside a black car. _Is that… A ROLLS-ROYCE?!_ The blonde just gawked at the expensive vehicle from his glass frame.

"Umm…t-thank you for today. For all the clothes, and for accompanying me to the dessert house." Levi was going to pay for him again, but it took a lot of begging and convincing to let him at least pay his own food. Eren could never understand rich people.

Levi didn't want to speak, he knew that having this conversation meant as a goodnight, and a goodbye. Sure, they can see each other again some other time, but that thought wasn't enough when Levi didn't want to part with Eren, not even for one second.

"No, like I said, today was supposed to be treated as my apologies from yesterday. Inflicting fear and uneasiness into you was the last thing I wanted. I hope this was enough to compensate." he replied honestly.

"No! This was much more than I expected and wished for, you really didn't have to do all this. I would've been happy even with just a home cooked dinner or something!"

"Maybe for you that'd be enough, but I have nothing except for money. My personality is bad, so it wasn't like words alone could do it. I never had time in my life to learn anything besides on how to make more and more money. I couldn't have been able to cook for you the dinner you wanted." he explained, a hint of sadness and regret lingered in his words that hid deeper meanings, which the boy didn't know about.

Eren felt a little bad. _I guess rich people have their own worries too. We live in completely different worlds…_

"…That's funny, because here I am, doing my best everyday just to live with a roof over my head, yet the things that someone like you don't know how to do, is something as simple as 'cooking'." Eren laughed a little at their gap. Looking down at his own feet, the brunette had an unexplainable feeling developing his chest. He felt warm, even though it was in the middle of winter.

Soon, he felt his heart race miles per hours, as he felt strong arms circling around him. Was Levi…hugging him? Unable to find words to explain this action, he just settled with the fact that Levi liked physical contacts.

"If you ever need financial help, know that you can always come to me. I will give you as much as you need, as much as you want."

Upon hearing this, Eren flinched and immediately pushed Levi aside. This caused confusion for the older one, but just by looking at Eren's face, he understood that his words were an insult to the boy.

"You think I am spending time with you because you thought I needed your _help_?!" he spat. His heart suddenly ached, Eren wasn't sure if it was because of what Levi suggested, or if it was the fear of possibly ending a friendship that has barely started. He wanted to take back his harsh words, but he also wanted to stand on his grounds. He had to make sure Levi didn't see him as someone so pitiful and hateful, that 'he was only spending time with him in order to ask him for money'.

"I apologize…I honestly didn't think of you that way…though I really meant what I said. I guess it just came out wrong..." Levi replied, and for the first time, he was unable to look at those beautiful green eyes. "I know you've only known me since yesterday, and I've been meaning to tell you this, but I already know a lot about you, _much _more than you think I do." he continued. "I know that you are not the kind of person to do such a shameful act. I know it very well…I just…I just didn't want to see you in distress when times get rough…"

Eren didn't know what to say, because there were so many questions he wanted to ask. What did he mean by that? How did Levi know about him? Does that mean that Levi knew him before their meeting at the cafe yesterday? Before he could say anything, Levi continued again.

"I didn't mean to hurt you with my suggestion, but if I ever saw you roughed up because of _anything_, I would be upset, furious, and disappointed in myself for being useless, when the only thing I could give you was financial help…That is why I said what I did…please understand." It was the older man's turn to look down now. He was going to keep his head down until Eren would forgive him.

Levi's heartwarming speech washed away all the negative feelings, and Eren found himself heating up again. He found it hard to believe that someone he didn't know existed until yesterday, someone older with a much more superior status, would care for a nobody like him. It almost felt like a prank, a play…a dream…

Realizing that Levi still had his head down, Eren quickly rushed over and held his gloved hands, grabbing the other's attention.

"L-Levi, please, lift your head up! I'm sorry for getting upset like that all by myself. I know that it was very immature to just snap like that, even though all you had were good intentions…If anything, I should be the one apologizing!" Eren pleaded.

Levi felt some reliefs, knowing that the younger wasn't going to just walk away and ignore him for disrespecting him. Suddenly, he wanted to hold the boy, but he was afraid that Eren might find it repulsive. He already embraced him a few minutes ago for letting his feelings off guard. He told himself numerous times to act slowly and carefully, and he was determined to keep it that way because this boy was special.

Mumbling a small thank you, Levi simply squeezed Eren's hands that were still touching his own. A light blush appeared on the younger's face once more, and that was enough to soothe the elite's restless mind. Feeling slightly awkward now, Eren let go of the Levi's hands and shuffled a few steps back.

"I guess I should go in now…Armin must be wondering."

"Yeah, and it's cold too, I don't want you to get sick for being outside with me for so long."

"So…bye for now?"

Levi genuinely smiled for once, and nodded at Eren. He remained silent, because uttering the word 'bye' from his own mouth would definitely bring his mood down. After watching Eren enter the building safely, he turned back to his car and drove away.

A lot of things were on his mind, but he really enjoyed himself today. He had more fun in half a day than he had in a whole year. Remembering something, he looked back at the seats as he reached a red light. Eren's old coat was still laying on the backseat. _That's right, I only handed him the bags of new clothes_…Feeling a little disgusted at himself, he made the decision to keep Eren's coat instead of throwing it away.

* * *

><p>Information Update : <strong>tinyurl  qxcjhoo**


	6. Chapter 06

OMG. I CAN'T BELIEVE I WROTE ANOTHER CHAPTER ON THE SAME NIGHT. /my studies...nuuuuuuuuu! Anyways, I was just too excited about this so I couldn't stop myself. I FINALLY reached a developping point. Gah, it felt like it took forever, yet I also felt like I advanced it too quickly. ;;;;;; Please please please review and let me know what you think. Is the plot going too fast to the point where it sounds unrealistic?

I still have a few chapters to go before getting to a resolve, so please don't get bored yet, ok? TT^TT P.S: This chapter still starts on the same day as the past 3 chapters...meaning, on a Saturday night, after the 'date'. **And a whole week passes from the 3rd scene and onwards (I changed this to make events slightly more realistic. OTL** I'm sorry if this caused any confusion!).

-Shiragami

* * *

><p>"Eeeeeeeeeeeren…" Armin called out from a gloomy corner.<p>

Just out of the shower, the boy who got called froze upon hearing his name in such a creepy manner.

"Y-Yes, Armin?"

Truth to be told, the moment Eren unlocked the entrance door, he dropped all his gifts from Levi on his bed and proceeded to ignore Armin completely. As far as locking the washroom door when he was about to shower, so the blonde wouldn't corner him, like a predator to its prey.

Why am I avoiding Armin, you ask? Apart from making a huge deal about Levi this afternoon upon seeing the real man in flesh, Eren was certain that he would attempt to squeeze out all the detail of today's event, from the 'privileged' boy who got to spend a day with one of the most powerful men in Wall Maria.

However, he knew he couldn't keep on pretending to ignore his best friend, and it would just get worse as it dragged on, so there they were, now sitting cross-legged under the kotatsu. Eren tried to distract himself by drying his hair with a towel, but Armin wasn't going to let him.

Secretly, as if he was doing some illegal tradings, Armin passed him a magazine. Raising an eyebrow, Eren looked at the flashy 'book', then back to Armin. The shorter one just flicked his chin at him. Taking the flick as a cue, Eren flipped through the center of their attention. As expected though, Armin _would_ read such educational paper prints. _I bet he has these issues monthly subscribed._

As he flipped through uncaringly, one specific section caught his eyes, it was a two page filler of a picture of Levi, looking as displeased as usual. Turning to the next page, it was a whole page of words, all words. To help him understand better, Eren read the topic header and chocked on his own spit.

"_Q&As from the most wanted man in Wall Maria, Mr. Levi Ackerman!_"

Armin watched his best friend in amusement, he knew his instinct was never wrong. Patting Eren on the back, he retreated to their shared bedroom, leaving the confused brunette alone in privacy.

"I am going to spare the interrogations for now, why don't you get to know and become more friendly with Mr. Ackerman?" What surprised Eren the most though, was the fact that Armin would even try and attempt a smug face.

…

Reading nervously under the kotatsu, his heart skipped faster and faster with each question and answer. Even Eren himself, knew that he wasn't very bright, and was very slow to catch up on things…but this was way beyond his capabilities. _How was I supposed to know the importance of his position? I mean, I guess Armin told me about him having the 'largest company in Wall Maria' or something, but…How was I supposed to know the measures of these things?! _Eren wanted to beat himself up for treating Levi like another average human being, up until now.

Absorbing new information with every new line he read, he stopped and blushed at the next question.

"_Q: Mr. Ackerman, can you please describe your ideal type for your fans?"_

_"A: Innocent and well mannered. Preferably someone shorter."_

"_Q: Hahahaha, I can see why, Mr. Ackerman!"_

Eren twitched at the interrogator's rude remark, how dare he make fun of Levi's height? Though he can't lie to himself, seeing Levi for the first time, he thought that the older man was short too. _But that's besides the point!...So he's into someone shorter, huh…No matter how you look at me, I am taller and a male to boot…and my manners defenestrated itself at the dessert house today..._

_Wait. Why am I comparing myself to his ideal? Huh? NO. NO MIND, WHERE ARE YOU GOING! WE ARE FRIENDS!_

The confused boy pulled on his hair. Armin peaked from behind their bedroom door and giggled mischievously (Armin's always be peekin'). His theory was showing some satisfying results.

Groaning in frustration, Eren kept on reading with curiosity about Levi. The man just suddenly appeared into his life and left a very deep impression. Eren thought that even if this was the last time they met, he didn't think that he would ever forget Levi. He just came on too strong.

"_Q: Mr. Ackerman, can you please reveal your monthly income? I am sure all the viewer and fans are dying to know!"_

"_A: Sorry, this is something I cannot reveal in order to protect my company's privacy."_

"_Q: Even just a rough estimate?"_

"_A: That's right, even just an estimate. My apologies."_

_Hmm…I guess he could potentially be the richest man in Wall Rosa…but how rich is 'richest'? _

Growing up poor, Eren never knew of the possibilities, more specifically, he couldn't imagine them. For him, even money of a day's worth of meal was a lot. Unfortunately, before he could even look at the total of all the clothes Levi bought for him earlier today, the elite had already crumpled and stuffed the receipt in his pockets. Sighing, the brunette could only guess that they must've worth at least three years of constant labor to afford all those clothes, judging from the price of that one coat he inquired. Feeling bad, he thought about sharing them with Armin, _I'll ask him later if he wants to wear some of them…_

That night, he read and reread the Q&As, just so he wouldn't forget about the details. He even took note of Levi's profile. _December 25__th__..huh?_ Eren even thought of what to give for him on Christmas, which was also his birthday. It was coming up too soon though, the month of December already started and he hasn't saved up much money. He couldn't purchase anything expensive. And even if he did, he was absolutely positive that Levi already possessed it, or possessed something even fancier.

He couldn't sleep that night, it was all too much of a shock to him. He was half shocked at himself for encountering someone so amazing, half confused on why Levi would be interested in someone like him. He tried not to toss and turn too much, as Armin was already asleep on the other bed across his own.

Little did he know, Armin was still wide awake, smiling to himself that Eren finally met someone unique and dependable in this world. After the tragedy that fell upon his childhood friend, he never once saw Eren lower his guards. There were always things on his mind, things he had to worry about constantly. Even with 'friends', Eren never fully trusted any of them. He always put on a friendly front, but he never tried to get close to anyone...he was afraid of getting hurt again.

Armin also reflected upon their encounters earlier today, and from the way Levi acted, something was definitely up. He wasn't sure what kind of business the elite wanted with his best friend, but he felt that someone as important as the President of Survey Corporation, wouldn't get involved with a full-timer young adult for no apparent reason. He was testing his theory, he was willing to give his best friend a push. And the moment he sees a few results that could prove his entire theory wrong, Armin would be there to drag Eren out of the mess before he breaks down again.

…

"Hanji, just SHUT the FUCK UP."

"Oh come on, I did all the other half of your homework for you last Saturday, and I just get yelled at? This is too much, Levi!"

"Yeah? Well I don't need to hear you yap about it all week, do I? I said thanks, didn't I? And it's PRESIDENT Ackerman to you."

"…Here they go again…" whispered an employees, behind their president's office door.

"Mr. Hanji sure is brave, going up against President Ackerman like that…" said another employee, making a few photocopies of a document.

"I heard that Mr. Hanji and President Ackerman were roommates back in university." whispered someone, poking his head over a cubicle.

"Ehh-?! No way, so they are friends? President Ackerman actually has a FRIEND?!" exclaimed his fellow cubicle neighbor.

"SHHHHHHH- YOU'RE TOO LOUD GOD DAMMIT!"

With a slam of the door, the entire floor fell into silence as Levi stormed out of his office, leaving Hanji behind. All the workers on that floor almost had a heart attack at the sudden entrance of their president, especially right after whispering about him behind his back.

Taking a break in the smoking area, Levi lit a cigarette and switched open his phone. Levi wasn't a smoker, he found it strange how he wasn't getting addicted to it like everyone else who tried smoking. Sometimes he just lit one to relieve his headache, some other times he just lit one so his lips wouldn't feel cold.

Browsing through his contact list (most of them being annoying-busybody-pig-presidents of other companies who just wouldn't leave him alone), he didn't even realize that he didn't have the boy's phone number, due to his hectic schedules. Feeling another wave of headache coming through, he sighed loudly. Feeling restless once more that he couldn't text Eren, nor call him to hear his sweet voice. He was a whole week deprived of 'Eren'.

_Damn it, when will be the next time I'll have a free day again?_ He counted the dates in his head, his entire schedule was mapped inside his brain. There was one free day in four days, and another one in twenty days. And today was the 14th of December already…_Can't have him for Christmas, huh…_

Squashing the cigarette butt on a tray, he marched back in his office, expecting to find Hanji there. He wanted to discuss about his schedule with him once more, before noticing that the little shit head wasn't in anymore. About to blow up, the president once more scared all his employees by slamming the door shut with incredible force, almost cracking the walls.

…

Eren was on cleaning duty on a Monday afternoon as usual when he heard the entrance door chime. He was about to greet his customer, as he would to anyone who came through that pair of doors, but he did not expect to see a familiar face.

"Good afternoon, Eren Jaeger."

The brunette could only blink blankly at the tall blonde.

"H-How did you know my name?" he asked.

"President Ackerman told me a lot of about you."

Eren nodded and blushed a little at his explanation. He couldn't help but to subconsciously pay attention to everything that had the name 'Levi Ackerman' in it.

"My name is Erwin Smith, I know this is sudden, but I will be your new manager from today onwards. I would be happy if you could come to my office after your shifts. Also, please pass this announcement around, and let all the present workers know that I need to see them as well. Do not worry about those who are not working today, I will contact personally."

With that brief introduction, he gracefully walked towards Weilman's office, deep within the back of the shop. It was no wonder that Weilman didn't come in this morning, despite being a Monday, but why would that old man let someone buy his shop?

…

10 pm, the needle landed. It was finally time for Eren, Oluo and Mike to go see Erwin. Not even changing out of their uniform, they directed themselves towards the office at the back, Weilman's gold plaque was already gone. Three knocks, and Erwin gave them permission to come in. Eren was the one to open the door ever so timidly. He knew this man was with Levi last week in this cafe, so that must've meant that he worked under Levi. They wore similar suits after all.

"Good evening, gentlemen, as much as I would like to send you home right away, I need to let all the employees know what is happening, and what is going to happen." he explained. "Your previous owner, Kitz Weilman, retired after Survey Corporation bought this shop from his hands."

Oluo clasped both of his hands over his mouth, yet his loud gasp could still be heard.

"I am one of many capable subordinates for this position under Levi Ackerman, the President of Survey Corporation. However, I was the only one left in charge of this business because Weilman has never expanded this name into branches." The three employees just listened in shock, even for Eren, because he never knew Levi and Mr. Smith came to this cafe because they already knew that they would acquired this store. "With this said, do expect future branches to slowly appear in other parts of the Wall, and expect your wages to go up as well. Your previous owner paid minimum wage despite owning such a fancy and high in demand store, courtesy to the employees." Erwn shook his head.

Oluo and Mike just stared at each other in disbelief before grinning at each other. Eren simply looked at Erwin, eyes full of questions. The elite seemed to have noticed the light in Eren's eyes, so after dismissing the other two workers, he asked the boy to sit down and talk about it.

"Sorry, I'm keeping you here so late, Mr. Smith…" Feeling quite guilty, Eren took a seat in the fancy armchair that replaced Weilman's cheap looking ones.

"Don't be, President Ackerman will not let me live in peace if he heard I mistreated you." Erwin gave out a small laugh.

There! That was the question he wanted to ask, he wanted to know this ever since Levi came to his apartment that afternoon.

"Mr. Smith, what does Le- I MEAN, umm, President Ackerman has anything to do with me? It is not my intention to sound like I'm bragging, but I heard that the President is a very important and busy person, so why did he drive me home two Fridays ago like it was nobody's business, and came looking for me the very next day?" Eren's voice was full of suspicion and worry, for the first time, he was afraid of a response that could potentially break his heart..._Break my heart? What would? And why would it break my heart? What does anything have to do with me?_

Erwin could tell that Eren didn't even figure out his own thoughts yet, there was no way he would confide anything when the boy himself didn't even know _why_ he was asking such questions.

"I am sorry, Eren Jaeger, things like this are better for you to figure out yourself, or ask President Ackerman directly. I am sure both of you would be happier if you solved this between the two of you, and not use an outsider like me to bring the two of you on the same path."

Mind clouded with questions. _He shows up one day out of nowhere, barges into my life out of nowhere, claims that he knows me much more than I think he does…. the puzzle pieces just doesn't seem to fit…Am I forgetting something very important?_ Even though they only saw each other for two days, and knew each other for a few more, it just didn't make any sense for Levi to have _anything_ to do with the brunette. They lived in different worlds, the gap was too great for one to come across the other.

Suddenly remembering something Levi has said before.

"_It's important, I have something I need to talk to you about." _

That's right! The day he came to Eren's apartment, he said that. _What was the important thing?_ They ended up enjoying their time too well, that neither of them remembered to bring it up again.

Getting up from his seat all too suddenly, he asked Erwin one last question.

"Mr. Smith, may I please have President Ackerman's address?!"

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><p>DUN DUN DUN.<p>

Information Update : **tinyurl / ox2pb7l**


	7. Chapter 07

I'm crazy, I produced another chapter, I didn't study at all tonight! TT^TT I will leave this with you now, and I won't upload anything tomorrow. 3 chapters a day is enough to last a while, right? Ughhhhhh, writing this chapter was so painful. all my feels. Reviews are extremely appreciated, it helps me a lot when I know what my readers are thinking! **(Time line changed since Chapter 06! One week has passed since their first 'date', it is a Monday evening right now. New readers don't need to be concerned about this! And I also changed the floor numbers because the previous one was just too much...) **

-Shiragami

* * *

><p>"Hey, Eren Jaeger! Don't you need his phone number as well-…?"<p>

Without sticking around to even hear the last sentence, Eren already disappeared from the halls.

_Well, this could get interesting…_

…

Sighing into the phone, the raven spoke, not even bothered to hide his annoyed tone.

"Hanji, for the last bloody time. You WILL go and call those pigs and rearrange. I need to empty 24th and 25th at all cost."

"_Buuuuuuuut, they will get very angry you know, and I won't be the only one who'll get yelled at!"_

Brushing his hair back with his free hand, it took all of Levi's willpower to not smash his phone onto the ground.

"Then cancel the contracts and meeting completely! If they can't be flexible with our time, then there is no need to do business with them. One or two losses won't matter."

The other side of the line suddenly got very quiet. The president was about to yell at his secretary again before he finally spoke up.

"…_Levi, not trying to get all serious on you or anything, but you sound extremely arrogant right now."_

"…Excuse me? I dare you to fucking say that again."

"_I SAID. You sound extremely arrogant right now! I'm disappointed, Levi, I wouldn't oppose you in your decisions, but the one you are making right now affects the entire company in a negative way!" _Hanji's voice stuck him like a slap on the face. _"You think letting your emotions interfere with your work is professional?! For a brat like him, are you prepared to lose the trust of your entire company?! Cool your head and get your priorities straight like the responsible adult you are, Levi."_

With that, Hanji hanged up on his superior for the first time.

_...Damn it all…_

…

The brunette stood by the streets for a good 10 minute now, yet he couldn't catch a single cab. Cursing under his breath, he went for his bag to fish out his phone…that was when he realized that he took nothing but his jacket with his wallet inside, and the address Erwin gave him. Feeling frustrated that he couldn't even call for a taxi, he held his head between his hands as he kneeled down.

Then he also realized that he couldn't call and tell Levi that he was coming over…and that he didn't even have Levi's number to begin with.

_Of course he wouldn't have given out his important contact number to just anyone…_

Feeling a little bad, would it bother Levi for him to just suddenly drop by his place unannounced, without even contacting him once throughout the week? The raven barged into Eren's apartment unannounced once, but when it was the other way around, Eren felt like a criminal for intruding his place. He could have secrets he didn't want anyone to find out about. _He could have a girlfriend living with him, for all I know._ The thought alone was able to send extremely discomfort to Eren's chest. Grasping the fabric right above his heart, Eren wondered in confusion.

_Why do I feel this way, what does my heart feel so bad? Am I getting sick?_

Not giving up, he stood up once again. Pulling up the hood of the coat Levi bought him, he waved fanatically at the yellow cab approaching his way. Finally seeing it coming to a stop, Eren attacked the passenger's door and climbed in. He gave the driver the address and threw him everything he had in his wallet. At this point, he didn't care anymore. There was only one thought on his mind.

_I need to see Levi. I need to solve this! I need to see him now…I want to see him...!_

…

After a half an hour of ride, the brunette got out of the taxi quickly before bidding a goodbye. Standing in front of him was an approximately fifty floors tall apartment, and it seemed that Levi lived on one of the highest floors. _"#50-1"_, as read on the paper. Entering through the automatic doors, a pair of night guards stopped him roughly.

"Hey kid, who are you and what are you doing here?" one of them asked.

In Eren's eyes, they looked like two, big bundles of pure muscles.

"We've worked here for five years, and we've never seen you before. State your name and your purpose here." said the other one.

Having a hard time to find the right words, he was so scared and nervous that one wrong word might result him in the police station.

"M-M-My name is E-Eren Jaeg-ger…Umm…I am here t-t-to see President Levi A-A-A-A-A-Ackerman…"

Eren wanted to punch himself in the face.

The guards just looked at each other, almost finding this hilarious. Not many people knew where the President of Survey Corporation lived, yet this meek looking kid knew exactly who to find and where to find them. They just brushed it off as Levi's relative or something. Finally letting Eren pass, he thanked his timid and weakness for passing by as a harmless little sheep (but you ARE one!).

If the lobby wasn't big enough already, the elevator completely blew Eren's mind. The elevator itself was decorated beautifully with expensive lights. The walls and floor just made the box look like a elegant waiting room instead. There were mirrors, there was even a window where you could see yourself go up and admire the view of the lake right behind the building.

It took a while before it reached the 50th level, which was also the top floor, Eren noted. As he got out of the elevator, he searched for room 50-1. To his surprised, there was only one door, on the highest floor. _Could it be that, the entire floor is Levi's home?!_ Shocked to the max, Eren kneeled down in front of the entrance, it certainly read #50-1, as it was engraved onto the golden door.

He timidly tried to press the doorbell, not sure what time it was anymore because he left everything in his locker back at the cafe. He prayed that Levi wasn't sleeping yet, he wanted to talk to him so bad that he rushed here without even thinking of anything else.

After a few presses with no response, Eren could only assume that Levi was still out. The poor boy wasn't even sure if the elite would come back tonight. Not wanting to get his new coat dirty, he took it off and used it as a blanket, instead of sitting on the ground with it.

…

Time passed by, yet Eren wasn't even sure what hour it was anymore. The hallway lights were constantly on, distorting his sense of natural time. He was close to dozing off, until he heard the elevator beep on the 50th floor, his floor. There could be only one person who would come all the way up here.

_Levi!_

As the door opened, Eren watched the man who came out, in awe and excitement. He was about to get up and call the older male's name before noticing a very scary expression worn on the other's face. _That's his usually face, isn't it? There's nothing to be scared of…_

"L-Levi!..."

Upon hearing a familiar voice, the well-dressed elite looked towards the direction of the said voice.

"Eren?!"

Eren hook his coat on his arm and ran towards the raven-haired man. He was about to welcome him back as a joke, since he just arrived here randomly, but little did he know that it wasn't the right time to joke around.

"What are you doing here?" His voice was so cold that it sent an awful chill down the brunette's spine. He didn't think he would ever hear Levi speak in such a cold manner. Gathering his courage and forced a little smile, he replied.

"Umm…sorry for dropping by…like this. I know you are busy and, and I just wanted to-"

Eren was then cut off by Levi's stressed out voice.

"Do you have ANY idea what time it is right now? And who gave you this address? You were NOT supposed to know where I live!" Levi yelled, his tone just a little too harsh. Eren could feel his glands burning up, vision getting slightly blurry. No, he would not back down and show his weakness like this, not in front of someone as strong as Levi.

"L-Like I said, I'm s-sorry…I didn't think before I came here…" he said, unable to look at the older man in the eyes anymore.

"Well, of course you didn't think. Do you EVER think? You acted like we were strangers the when we finally met again, and now you are SO familiar with me, you even asked for my address and came all the way here? How do you think that makes me feel?" Levi let out a huff, clearly pissed off about everyone and everything.

Eren wasn't sure what Levi was talking about, but should've known that Levi was just taking his anger out on him. Despite only getting to know him for a few days, he knew Levi wouldn't truly get angry over something as small as this.

"I don't know…and I don't understand, that's why I'm here to-"

"HUH? Care to speak louder and actually face me when you speak? I can't fucking hear you!"

This was it. This was all it took to crush the younger's courage. All the non-sense accusations were one thing, but to actually swear at him. Swearing at him only meant that Levi held no respect for Eren. Still looking down, he couldn't help but to let go of one of too many tears his lids were holding. Letting go of one, and you'd end up spilling the entire thing. Finally looking up, green orbs dulled by the big drops of tears, endlessly rolled down his face.

"I ONLY CAME HERE TO TALK TO YOU!" screamed Eren, fully crying at this stage, unable to contain the burn in his face and the pain in his chest. "I wanted to know more about you! I had SO many questions I wanted to ask!" Eren managed to chock out between sobs and hiccups. Even furiously wiping his tears with his sleeves wasn't enough to dry his eyes. "You said we were going to talk about something important, yet we never did! I didn't know how to contact you, yet I wanted to know! I wanted to know everything about you, about what you were going to tell me that day! I even wanted to know more about myself!"

Levi tried to grab Eren by the wrist to stop the boy from wiping his eyes so harsly, the skin around them were turning red from the abuse. The boy revolted from his touch and slapped his hands away.

"If you find me to be SUCH a dumbass who doesn't think with his head, and SUCH an annoyance to see hanging around your home, THEN YOU WON'T SEE ME IN YOUR LIFE AGAIN!"

With that said, Eren immediately ran off through the emergency exit. Couldn't wait for the elevator, he dashed down the stairs instead. He didn't want Levi to see anymore of his ugly side, he wanted to get out of Levi's sight and hide somewhere. He wanted to disappear…He was so ahead and full of himself that he completely ignored of Levi's feelings, and that made him feel ashamed.

The furious man just stood there in the middle of the hall of his exclusive floor, unable to comprehend what was happening around him for once. A phone call brought him back to reality. Whoever this was, they were going to receive a yelling of their life the moment Levi picks up the phone, or so did the elite thought.

"Levi? It's me, Erwin. Did you get to meet with Eren yet?"

"So YOU were the FUCKER that gave him my address?!"

"Levi, what's going on? Why are you even upset about this?! Did you meet with Eren yet or not?"

Levi just laughed hysterically at Erwin, finding everything so fucking funny right now.

"Yeah, I met him, but I complained a little and he just left." Levi almost sang the last few words.

A low gasp could be heard on the other line, Erwin couldn't believe what Levi has done. He thought that no matter how stressed out the president was, he would never ever lash it out of someone special to him.

"Levi, go find Eren, now!"

"Why should I? That brat just shows up as he pleases and leaves as he pleases. Turning my quiet life upside down ever since, making me feel uneasy and restless all the time, MY FUCKING MIND IS FILLED WITH HIM I CAN'T EVEN CONCENTRATE ON MY GOD DAMN WORK!"

Levi wasn't acting like himself, Erwin could tell. He was having another emotional breakdown. It only happened when stress build up for a long time, both from his work and his social life. Then, even the tiniest event could trigger the outrage and he won't be able to come back to his senses until he falls unconscious and wakes up again the next day.

Cautiously and calmly, Erwin voiced out his worries.

"Levi, you can be mad all you want, but _please_ just listen to this."

"…"

"It is true that it was me who gave Eren the address. I felt that he was ready to talk, or at least hear you out. He even asked for your address himself, he was the one to initiate all of this."

"…"

"He was so excited to meet you again, he was curious to learn more about you. He even unintentionally left all his belongings at work today. I was going to call you right away to tell you that Eren was heading over to your place, since he obviously couldn't call you himself, but I thought a surprise visit from him would've lightened your spirit at least…"

At this point, Levi's mind was caught by Erwin's words, so he quietly listened in.

"Now I doubt he has enough money to go back home, especially considering how expensive cab fairs are. The poor kid probably spent all his cash on this taxi ride."

"…so, what are you trying to tell me?..."

It was Erwin's turn to feel frustrated, that his friend who has lost his mind could've potentially destroyed the most important thing to him.

"Eren will either find somewhere in your building to spend the night, wander around outside until he gets lost, or he will sleep outside under the harsh winter night. So hurry up and go find him already! Why did you think you lost Annie in the first place?!"

Erwin's last words were enough to snap Levi's rage in half. He hung up on Erwin, his headache felt terrible from all the yelling he did to Hanji…_and to Eren_…

Immediately panicking, he thought about all kinds of situations. Sleeping on the floor somewhere in the building, getting picked up by society's pigs who were also living in this building, getting a fever from sleeping outside, or ever worse, getting frost bites. He could also damage his joints and render him handicapped, if he stayed outside under this kind of weather. All kinds of worry running through his mind now, he was scared. He was afraid of losing Eren's trust, but he was even more afraid of Eren losing something permanently.

_I'm such a fool, all these years of experience and training, I thought I've matured! _

Cursing at himself as he darted down the stairs in a look out for Eren_._

_He couldn't have just picked a random floor to sleep on, no, he couldn't have. _

Running down all fifty zigzagged staircases made him out of breath, panting and sweating hard at the same time. He made it to the lobby, only to realize that the boy was nowhere to be found. He immediately went to the guards and asked them if they saw a boy with brown hair and green eyes around here. They nodded and pointed a general direction outside.

_Damn it!_

Not even having the time or care to button up his coat, Levi ran out in the middle of night in search for Eren. He wasn't afraid to wake up the entire neighborhood with his shouting just to find the boy. Even if this gave away his location, he could always move again. But Eren was the only think he could not lose, he would never forgive himself, if as much as one hair on the boy was damaged because of him.

Yelling out his name over and over again, he searched the community park across from his apartment. The lamppost gave out some light, but he couldn't find the boy under their guidance. He ran everywhere, he made circles around the gardens, the fountains, checked all the benches, but could not find a single trace of the brunette.

Until he heard light sobbing.

Eren accidently let that out by mistake. He was holding down his breath the entire time so he wouldn't be found, but because he was crying, couldn't breathe through his nose. Just when he needed to take in another breath, a sob accidently found it's way out. Hearing footsteps running closer, hands rummaging the bushes besides him, Levi finally found the top of a person's head behind one of the bushes.

Eren was about to stand up and run away again, but Levi used all of his remaining strength to hold the boy still. The brunette was struggling hard, screaming, kicking and throwing weak punched at Levi's hand that held his wrist. Frustrated with the younger's trashing, he pulled on the other's arm and held him tight in his embrace. So tight Eren's diaphragm was squeezed to the point that it was hard to breathe.

They were silent for a minute as Levi caught on his breath and strength. His hair was drenched, yet frozen at the tip, he could barely open his eyes because beads of sweat rolled down from his forehead and over his eyelids. His previously styled hair was now messy and unkempt. Eren was so startled and scared at the same time that he has stopped crying.

Feeling that the younger's attempts to escape has stopped, he released his hold a little, but still held his arms around the brunette protectively. He rested his head on Eren's shoulder.

"Eren…"

The said boy remained silent, obviously not wanted to talk to the other male.

"Eren…"

He could feel his heart skip a beat. It wasn't fair when Levi was suddenly using such a kind, sweet voice calling out his name, in contrast to his harsh one just a while ago.

"…Eren…"

Finally giving in, the brunette asked, still clearly angry with Levi.

"…W-What do you want?"

"…Eren…Eren…"

"Like I said, what do you w-"

"Eren…Eren…Eren…"

Levi's legs lost their strength and collapsed on to the ground. The last thing he could hear was Eren's worried voice, calling out his name over and over again.

_What a relief, he still cares for me…Thank God…_

* * *

><p>No information update for this one! Mainly because it's too late and I'm too tired. The next chapter will explain things in further detail anyways, so, until then~!<p> 


	8. Chapter 08

I don't even know about this chapter. I think I made this story more depressing than it should be. /where did all the fluff go?/ I guess I just wanted to bring out the character backgrounds a little more before proceeding. It has always been one of my pet-peeves when character backgrounds are unknown. This was an awkward chapter with me, mostly because even _I_ didn't know how Levi and Eren would react after their little 'fight' due to Levi's rage quit (LOL). So here's a filler chapter...hopefully it doesn't sound too half-butted. TT^TT

-Shiragami

* * *

><p>"…beep…beep…beep…"<p>

The sound of a faint beeping could be heard in the background. With a spinning mind and heavy body, Levi attempted to open his eyes. They were having a hard time to focus, so the first thing he registered was 'white'. _White ceiling, white lights_. Then he turned his head a little. _White walls. White bed._ He then shifted his attention, now his mind a little clearer than before, to the objects around him. He saw tubes coming out of his left arm, climbing their way up to a bag filled with clear liquid.

_Ah, I'm in a hospital…_

Trying to sit up, despite feeling pain in his muscles, he pushed himself straight and massaged his head with his free hand. He then searched for his cell phone in his pocket, only to realize that he was wearing a hospital gown.

He looked around for some kind of service device, and saw the red button conveniently right beside his bed. Calling for a nurse, a lady with black hair, tied down in two pigtails, arrived right away. Scribbling something down on her notepad, she smiled at Levi when she gave him her attention.

"How are you feeling, Mr. Ackerman? My name is Mina, feel free to tell me anything that concerns you."

Levi stared at her, he wanted to ask many questions. What's the date today? What was he doing here? What about work? Mina noticed Levi's struggles, she has been working in this position for so long that she knew what the patients needed when they acted a certain way. Putting Levi's mind to rest, she explained.

"Mr. Ackerman, do not worry, you are taking a day off today. Mr. Zoe, your secretary I believe, have taken your place so you can rest worry free." Levi's eyes stopped focusing on Mina, instead, they wandered nowhere in particular.

"You were brought in early this morning under emergency, a young boy called the ambulance to pick you up at approximately two in the morning. You passed out from excess stress on your mind and body. We also received test results that you have been smoking in high doses within the past few days. And to top it off, you worked your body for too long, along with being malnourished for the past few week." She listed on as she flipped through her papers.

The raven didn't know what to say, yesterday was a blur and although he remembers what happened, he'd rather not think about it.

"Also, here is a note for you from your secretary Hanji Zoe, as well as a letter from a man named Erwin Smith." She slipped two envelopes in Levi's hands. Then she pulled over a small mobile cart with Levi's belonging on top of it.

"We did a check on your clothes just for safety measures, but rest assured that nothing got taken away."

Levi nodded.

"Now that you've woken up, I will come back in thirty minutes to bring you some food and refreshments. Take it easy, Mr. Ackerman." Mina bid her respects before quickly closing the door behind her.

Levi was still in a daze, he looked at the papers in his hand, and decided to read Hanji's note first.

"_Yo, idiot Levi! I can call you that now, right? You certainly earned that title thanks to yesterday, and I will certainly be calling you that for at least a week from now on. I get the privilege to do so, okay? I am even doing all your work for you, on top of my own work! You better treat me like a king when you come back!"_

Although the younger was being as rude as usual, Levi didn't feel a single flame of annoyance in his heart. He felt weak and full of regret, he just couldn't get fired up.

"_Now, don't get all sappy on me, I am filling in for you for the next three days, okay? I know, I know, it's like a suicide mission, but since it's the great Hanji doing it, it's gonna be a piece of cake! Oh, speaking of cake, I demand you buy me one the first thing you come back to your gloomy office! So for now, take it easy my old buddy, capiche?"_

Underneath the messy writings was Hanji's signature. Beside it, he doodled something that looked a lot like Levi's usual unimpressed face. The president laughed a little before feeling another guilt wave wash over him.

Next was Erwin's letter. He was more nervous for this than anything. Erwin apparently knew about the whole situation yesterday concerning Eren's arrival. Not that he was afraid of reading a complaint from his subordinate, he was more afraid of what he might say about Eren. Carefully tearing the envelop from the side, he took out the neatly folded white sheet of paper. Unfolding it, he started reading.

"_How are you feeling? I know you must be worried right now so I will just get straight to the point. You collapsed on Eren earlier this morning. I arrived to the hospital right away upon getting a quick call from a doctor there, and he told me that you were under extreme stress and malnutrition. I think Eren heard this too, he was by your side the entire time before daybreak. It took a lot of convincing and pulling the boy to get him to go home. Don't worry, I gave him the permission to stay home for today, he was in no condition to work anyways."_

Levi clenched the paper, crumbling the ends. He grabbed his hair and pulled on it, his face distorted in pain as his heart ached. He couldn't believe that he drove away someone he was being so careful with. They didn't even had the chance to properly get to know each other, yet he could already feel their end coming. He wasn't even sure why he felt anger when he saw the boy in front of his doors last night.

_It was so late, what was he thinking, travelling all by himself? There could've been people who would target him! He didn't how many society scums lived in luxury, yet he just walked around the building like a deer in a lion's den!_

He was really worried about the boy's safety. He thought that he could predict Eren's actions, but apparently the brunette was wilder than he expected. Never did he expect Eren to come find him, he really didn't want Eren to know about his true self. Yes, Levi was afraid of rejection once Eren comes to know about his past. He was hiding things in his home, things he wasn't ready to show yet.

Letting loose of his grip, he smoothed out the rest of the paper he crumbled.

"_I think you should check on the boy once you are ready. I don't know when you will wake up, but when you do, make up with him, ok? The kid's restless, give him a call whenever you can."_

At the bottom, the last line, was a number. Assuming it was Eren's, Levi brushed his thumb over the ink. Thinking what he should say when the other picks up the phone. Should he apologize? Should he pretend nothing happened? What should he say?

Whatever he planned to say, he would say it to the boy. He couldn't feel any anger inside, guilt and depression might've been there, but no matter how angry the boy would be, he no longer had any intention to lose control anymore.

Picking up the old phone, he pressed in the numbers slowly with shaking fingers. His heart beat faster with every tone. Suddenly hearing the other side picking up, Levi felt nervous and uncertain for the first time in years.

"Hello? Who is this?" Eren's voice was hoarse and lifeless. Was he sleeping just now, was he crying? Levi didn't know what to say, he just wanted to the younger's peaceful voice, after all.

"…Hello? Anyone there…?" The younger asked again, tone as gentle and worn out as a fallen leaf.

Levi felt a tear roll down. He has never felt this weak before. He wanted to let out a cry. He wanted to fly over to Eren and apologize. He wanted to beg for his forgiveness. He didn't want to be hated by him. Anyone but him.

Eren, on the other side, heard a small sniff and quiet uneven breathing. He lowered his eyes, and kept on listening in. He knew who was on the phone now, but he just kept quiet. He was tired and he still felt hurt from yesterday's events, but the fact that Levi was breathing and conscious was enough for him to feel better.

The call went on for over fifteen minutes, not one words exchanged. When Levi calmed down, he heard a quiet chain of breaths on the other side. _Did Eren fall asleep?_ Smiling a little himself, he whispered a few last words before ending their call.

"Thank you, Eren."

…

It was 7 pm now, Levi still sat on his bed looking out the window. He knew he should start thinking about his work by now, but his mind was blank. Light beeping from the machines was the only sound in his private hospital room, accompanied by some light IV dripping sounds. It was a Tuesday evening, a few of his loyal employees came to visit him throughout the day and gave their president their blessings and prayers. He was going to be discharged the following morning, and was asked to rest at home for at least two more days before going back to work. He didn't complain, although he was a very organized man, he appreciated the break. He only now realized how much abuse his body took for the past two week. From his first meeting with Eren until now, he was restless.

He reflected on his attitude and anger, he remembered doing the same thing with _her_. It ended everything, and he lost his happiness. He didn't want the past to repeat itself, yet he still succumbed to his own weakness. He had no right to face Eren, like the older and more experienced adult he was supposed to be. His behavior was just like a child throwing a tantrum because nothing went the way he wanted.

He sighed for the nth time and brought his free hand over his eyes.

As he was resting, he heard the door quietly slid open. Assuming it was the nurse again, he just ignored the intruding presence. Something was off though, the footsteps weren't the usual small heels clicking on the floor. They were light footsteps, he also heard items rustling within fabric. Feeling suspicious, he moved his hand away from his eyes to look at the stranger. What he saw was the ever so soft and beautiful green eyes, looking at him.

_Shit!_

Panicking, his eyes averted quickly as he didn't expect Eren to visit him. He was certain that the younger probably hated his guts by now, so the last thing on his mind was expecting a visit from the boy himself.

Eren dragged a chair and sat by Levi. The older man had his head turned towards the window instead, he couldn't look at the boy. Eren revealed the item he brought with him, it was a clothed bag. From the inside, he took out a thermos, a few containers and some silverware. He moved the tray that was attached to the hospital bed and set it up on top of Levi's body.

Knowing that the younger was doing something, he looked back just to sneak a peak when he realized that Eren was setting up his table with food. He didn't want the younger to go through the trouble of doing all this, especially when he didn't deserve this special treatment. He wanted to tell the boy to not worry about him, but his let out the wrong choices of words.

"I already ate." was all he could say under the confusion, and he wanted to throw himself out of a window.

Eren twitched his eye a little, but decided to ignore it. He was here to listen to Levi, not running out angry and crying.

"I-Is that so? Even then, could you…at least take a bite from these? I made these for y-you…" Levi's eyes widen up. He looked down at the containers all laid out in front of him.

_Eren made all of this…for me?_

"…I heard that you were malnourished, so I thought that I could at least cook you some healthy and nutritious food…so that you can get better…"

Unable to resist anymore, Levi's eyes locked on Eren's face. Eren looked tired as expected, but also slightly 'distant'…the brunette seemed to be afraid of him. His eyes kept down and his hands grounded into his own lap. Another sting was felt in his heart. The older male tried to reach out and hold the brunette's hands, but the moment their skin touched, Eren flinched and jerked his hands away, almost on reflex.

"S-Sorry! I'm s-sorry…." Eren apologized as he held the place Levi touched, as if he just got burnt in that area.

Right then and there, Levi broke down again. He held his head roughly between his palms, pulling his hair while doing so. Eren panicked and immediately stood up, patting the other's back. Before he could even ask what was wrong with Levi, the older just attacked Eren's waist instead. Wrapping his arms around him tightly, he burying his face against the younger's stomach apologizing over and over again. Confused at what was happening, Eren could only make a troubled face and attempted at petting Levi's hair, hoping that it would calm the other down.

…

"Are you feeling better...?"

Levi cried two times today. He never once cried before, so all these tears was shocking news to him. He also prayed that this crying thing wouldn't become a habit.

"…Yes."

"Would you like to eat now?"

"Yes…please."

Eren unscrewed the lid of the thermos and steam escaped from the rice porridge inside. Then, he opened all the smaller containers, revealing lightly stir-fried vegetables, some meat dish, and a hard boiled egg. He tried to keep the dishes as simple as possible, nothing heavily spiced and sauced, perfect for those who lacked appetite.

Levi was perfectly fine with feeding himself, but Eren snatched the spoons and forks faster so he could proceed to feed the older. A little embarrassed by the boy's sudden action, he looked at Eren with a questioning look.

"Say 'ahh'~…"

A tint of redness appeared from the elite's cheeks. He looked away quickly, hiding his warm face.

"Aren't you embarrassed at all, kid?"

He felt extremely relived though, the boy seemed to be his casual self again. Levi wouldn't have been able to live it down if the boy viewed him in terror. Eren just gave out a small laugh at Levi and replied.

"It's just what I do when my friends are sick. I take great care of them when they are bedridden!"

The raven was happy, yet upset about it at the same time. He was glad that Eren started to consider him as a friend, but it bothered him a little to know that Eren treated others like this as well.

The younger nudged him a little when he was lost in thoughts again. With the spoon still hanging in midair, Levi dived in and took a bite of the rice porridge that Eren made. Licking his dried lips, he smiled and gave Eren a nod of approval.

"It's very good. Much better than hospital food, or any store bought food."

Smiling brightly, the brunette just kept on feeding him all the dishes he made. Even when Levi was so full it made him uncomfortable, he didn't say a word and just kept on eating with gratitude.

…

"You should go home now." Suddenly remembering the fight yesterday, Levi immediately explained himself. "I mean, it's getting late and it'll get dangerous on the streets…I don't want to see you anywhere but inside your apartment after dark."

Eren nodded, feeling reluctant on leaving. They were having a nice casual chat after the meal, and it felt nice to be able to speak to the older properly again. Packing his bags, Eren bid a goodnight and walked towards the door. Before he could open it, Levi called out suddenly.

"Wait! Eren…I know you probably don't want to remember this anymore, but…" He tried to find the right words. "…Would you like to come to my place again…? This Friday…"

_Even though I should use that time to catch up on my work instead, I need to properly patch up our relationship._

His heart jumped a little. Even though the younger accepted and forgave Levi's anger from last night, he wasn't sure if he'd wanted to return so soon. Thinking about it for a while, he gave the anxious man on the bed a reply.

"….okay, I guess I can go after work."

Levi let a breath that he didn't know he was holding.

"I'll call you…" he smiled at Eren.

"Yes, good night Levi, rest well."

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><p>Sorry my fellow readers, for not updating this story. I've lost the motivation to continue this after my midterms ended, and I am still lacking that motivation. This story will be on hiatus for a while, until I find the inspiration to continue again. TT_TT rolls away from this awkward chapter.


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